
THE RUSSIAN 
GRANDMOTHER'S 
WONDERTALES 


LOUISE SEYMOUR 
HOUGHTON 










COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 










































































THE 

RUSSIAN GRANDMOTHER'S 
WONDER TALES 

























I he old woman stole out to the tree, crept under the bed, and 

there hid herself 






The 

Russian Grandmother’s 
Wonder Tales 


BY 

Louise Seymour Houghton 

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ILLUSTRATED BY 

W. T. BENDA 


CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS 
NEW YORK = = = = = = 1906 











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Copyright, 1906, by 
CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS 

Published, September, 1906 


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THE FIVE GRANDCHILDREN 

PHILLIPS, SHERRILL, MARGARET, 
RUSSELL, AND CAROLINE 


PREFACE 


f 11HE stories which the Russian grand- 
mother told will be found, with many 
others, in a German collection of “ Tales and 
Legends of South Slavonia,” put forth in 
Vienna some twenty years ago by Dr. Fried¬ 
rich Kraus, an ardent student of folk-lore. 
I have sketched in a slight background of 
peasant village life as it still exists in some 
parts of Southern Russia, because this is the 
proper setting of these stories; and I have 
been careful to clothe them as nearly as I 
might in the simple language in which they 
are told to-day by many a village fireside 
in South Slavonia. 

I frankly confess to having received from 
Mr. Joel Chandler Harris the suggestion 
which I have thus carried out. It was an 
vii 


PREFACE 


unerring literary instinct which impelled 
him to put upon the lips of Uncle Remus 
and in the environment of a Southern coun¬ 
try home of half a century ago the stories 
which he had found among the colored peo¬ 
ple of the South. Folk-tales, of whatever 
character, speak the more directly home to 
the hearts of children, whatever their own in¬ 
tellectual environment, in proportion as their 
setting is most nearly that which naturally 
belongs to them. Just as the highest value 
of the Homeric poems is their revelation of 
the heart of man, showing that in all ages 
and under all conditions heart answers to 
heart as face answers to face in water, so 
the folk-tales of all peoples in their native 
form have a higher function than simply to 
amuse, a higher than mere literary value; 
they are the child’s best introduction to the 
study of human nature. 

The children will not be the less inter¬ 
ested in the stories which the Russian grand- 
viii 


PREFACE 


mother told to the little peasant boy if they 
discover in her wonder-tales some analogies 
with stories that they already know. The 
adventures of Master Reinecke and Mrs. 
Petz , of Isegrim and Lampe, will surely re¬ 
mind them of the Uncle Remus tales; they 
will find some suggestion of Kamer-es - 
zaman and the Princess Budoor in the story 
of “ The Beg and the Fox,” a hint of the 
“ City of Brass,” in that of “ The Vila 
in Muhlenberg,” a faint reflection of the 
“Arabian Nights” story of the Fisherman 
in the tale of the “ Three Eels,” and they 
will be especially pleased to recognize their 
old friend—and Sindh ad the Sailor's —the 
roc, in the bird Kumrikusha. The transfor¬ 
mations which are so enchanting a feature 
of the “ Arabian Nights ” are here sug¬ 
gested in the story of “ Steelpacha,” while 
the dress of feathers, most universal of folk- 
fancies, found among every people in the 
world, and most perfectly developed in the 


IX 


PREFACE 


Arabian “ Story of Hassan of Bassora,” 
here appears in the tale of “ The Golden 
Apple-tree and the Nine Pea-hens/’ 

That these stories originated in that 
fountain-head of wonder-tales, the East, is 
very evident. They give more than a few 
suggestions of biblical story: the servant sent 
to announce the readiness of the feast (a 
courtesy of which I was myself the recipient 
in Syria last winter), the Delilah-like im¬ 
portunities by which the youngest sister lures 
from Steelpacha the secret of his strength, 
are perhaps the most striking instances. 

Although this preface is not written for 
the children, yet as there are children who 
occasionally dip into prefaces, let me call the 
attention of such to the difference, both in 
style and point of view, between these stories 
and those which they have received from the 
brothers Grimm, from Hans Andersen, and 
from a host of later writers. All of these 
drew their material from the same sources 


x 


PREFACE 


as those of the Russian grandmother; but 
their cultivated minds have worked this ma¬ 
terial into exquisite literary forms. Not so 
your own nurses, or even your mothers, who 
told you wonder-tales before you were old 
enough to read. Not so the village story¬ 
tellers in far-away parts of the world, who, 
like the Russian grandmother, still hand 
down to the children the stories they received 
from parents and grandparents. These 
sometimes lose the connection; they add lit¬ 
tle local touches—sweet wine from Zagorje, 
going home to Varazdin, and the like—they 
give to certain incidents the setting with 
which they are themselves familiar; most art¬ 
lessly they interweave such results of mod¬ 
ern invention and discovery as are familiar 
to them, with such blank ignorance of physi¬ 
cal facts as is shown by bringing in the sun, 
the moon, the winds, as persons. Many of 
you know how beautifully George Macdon¬ 
ald did this sort of thing in his story “ At 


xi 


PREFACE 


the Back of the North Wind,” and you per¬ 
fectly well perceive the difference between 
that story and such a tale as, for instance, 
“ So Born, So Die,” in this book. When 
you are older you will recognize that it is 
precisely the difference between literature 
and folk-lore. 

That many of these wonder-tales passed 
through Mohammedan minds on their way 
to the Russian grandmother, or her great¬ 
grandmother, is evident. “ The Beg and the 
Fox ” is a striking case in point; it almost 
seems as if the story ought, like the stories 
of the “ Arabian Nights,” to close with the 
exclamation, “ There is no God but God, the 
High, the Great! ” 

The humor of these stories, however, is 
unmistakably Slavonic. There is a fine 
pungency—not Oriental, though Oriental 
humor is very pungent—in certain of the 
endings, “ I have heard a lie, I have told a 
lie, and God give you joy! ” or after a pe- 
xii 


PREFACE 


culiarly impossible story, “ Whoever believes 
it will be blessed! ” The underlying pathos 
of the story of the Basil-plant suggests 
the exquisite sentiment of Hans Andersen’s 
“ Steadfast Tin Soldier ”; but its excessive 
simplicity, its dropped threads of thought, 
forbid the idea that it has been worked over 
by any more sophisticated mind than that of 
the Russian grandmother. 

In this simple-hearted story-teller I have 
tried to reproduce some lineaments of the 
peasant mother to whom, he tells us. Dr. 
Kraus owes his first impulse to folk-lore re¬ 
search. She was one of nine children of a 
poor pedler, brought up in a village of char¬ 
coal burners, deep in a Slavonian forest. 
She was illiterate, like our Russian grand¬ 
mother, but like her intelligent and learned 
in the wonder-lore of her people. Her son 
pays her a lovely tribute in the preface to 
the first volume of his collection: 


PREFACE 


She grew up like a flower in the hedge-row, among 
the simple peasant folk whose manners and spirit 
she made entirely her own. The villagers, who had 
a little education, therefore called her, contempt¬ 
uously, baba vracana (the little old sorceress), but 
the illiterate peasants lovingly named her nasa baba 
Eva (our little mother Eve). But for once the 
villagers were right, my mother is a sorceress; else, 
how comes it that I so constantly fall under the 
spell of her enchantments ... I solemnly declare 
that if there is a true word in metempsychosis, and 
it is left to our choice to return to the present 
state of existence, nothing would so sorely tempt me 
back, no crown, not even that of learning—as the 
simple assurance of the All-Father that he would 
give me again the same dear mother, though I were 
to go begging with her through the world. 

L. S. H. 

New York, September 1, 1906. 


XIV 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER PAGE 

I. The Little Boy and the Grandmother 1 

The Wolf as a Roman.4 

II. The Mother’s Fete-Day.12 

The Sick Lion.14 

III. Saturday Afternoon.17 

Whiteling’s War with Isegrim ... 19 

IV. The Fire of Shavings.31 

The Bear, the Boar, and the Fox . . 32 

V. Frost-Bitten Toes.37 

The Man, the Hare, the Fox, and the 

Bear.39 

VI. After Supper .49 

Reinecke’s Revenge on Isegrim ... 49 

VII. The Snowy Day.60 

The Bird, the Fox, and the Dog. . . 61 

The Fox and the Dove.66 

VIII. The Election Meeting .70 

The Fox and the Hedgehog .... 73 

Master Reinecke and Gockeling, the Cock 77 
The Disappointed Bear.78 


XV 














CONTENTS 


CHAPTER PAGE 

IX. Cat and Dog.82 

Why the Dog Cannot Endure the 
Cat, nor the Cat the Mouse . . 84 

X. A Pleasant Surprise.88 

The Fox and the Badger.90 

The Stag and the Hedgehog ... 93 

XI. The Patient Little Boy.97 

The Cock and the Hen.97 

XII. The Sheep-Play.109 

The Beg and the Fox.Ill 

XIII. Getting Ready.128 

The Seven Stars ........ 129 

XIV. Mother’s-Mother.137 

The Vila of Muhlenberg.143 

XV. The Little Boy Homesick.156 

A Short Story.157 

The Golden Apple-Tree and the Nine 

Peahens ..158 

The Wonderful Story.186 

The Youth and the Vila.190 

XVI. The Little Boy Sleepless.196 

The Vila in the Golden Castle . . 197 

XVII. Home Again.203 

Prince Hedgehog.205 


XVI 




















CONTENTS 


CHAPTER PAGE 

XVIII. The Betrothal.212 

The Deserter.214 

XIX. In the Fields.228 

The Hunter.231 

The Watch-Tower between Earth and 

Heaven.232 

The Bridge.239 

XX. Trinity-Monday.242 

So Born, So Die.245 

The Enchanted Dambs.253 

The Knot-Grass.260 

XXI. Threshing-Time.262 

“The Three Eels”.264 

XXII. The Korowai.273 

Morning-Dew.275 

XXIII. The Wedding.283 

“Young Neverfull”.284 

The Basil-Plant.288 

XXIV. After the Wedding.298 

Steelpacha. 299 


XVll 
























u 







Im I 



ILLUSTRATIONS 


The old woman stole out to the tree, crept under 


the bed, and there hid herself . . Frontispiece 

FACING 

PAGE 

Took his place in the middle of the field, with 

his mouth wide open.10 

Step into this sack, . . . and I will carry you 

around the field.46 

A shower of golden ducats fell, and lay upon 

the plates in three great heaps.106 

The third hoop dropped off; the cask fell asun¬ 
der, and a dragon flew out.172 

Then the youth clambered down and took the 
Vila home.194 

Drive the sheep slowly, one by one, to the other 
side.240 

When he beheld the basil-plant he felt an ex¬ 
traordinary love for it.288 















The 

Russian Grandmother’s 
Wonder-Tales 


CHAPTER i 

THE LITTLE BOY AND THE GRANDMOTHER 

rpHE little boy’s father was starosta, that 
is. Elder of the village, and the house 
the little boy lived in was grander than any 
other, on whichever side of the long street 
you might look. For it had two rooms 
opening into the court, and all the other 
houses, even that of the pop , who said Mass 
in the church on Sunday, had only one. 
And this grand house was not crowded like 
the other houses, where the grandparents 
and the parents and all the married sons and 
their wives and children lived in the one 
1 


THE LITTLE BOY AND THE GRANDMOTHER 

room. The starosta was not a bolshak , or 
head of a family, of the old-fashioned sort. 
He did not consider that he had a right to 
rule his children like a despot and make 
them work for him, however old they might 
be, as many of the fathers in the village did. 
He even approved of young people setting 
up housekeeping by themselves. Therefore, 
though some of the older bolshaks shook 
their heads and said harm would come of it, 
when the little boy’s elder brother married 
he permitted him to have a house of his own. 
It was at the far end of the village. 

Thus, in the little boy’s house there were 
only the grandmother, the father and moth¬ 
er, the three daughters, the half-grown son, 
and the little boy. They were not at all 
crowded, you see, for they had two rooms. 
The cowherd woman and the two moujiks 
who helped the starosta on the land, slept, 
of course, in the stalls with the cattle under 
the shed that went around three sides of the 
2 


THE LITTLE BOY AND THE GRANDMOTHER 

court. In their warm sheepskin coats, made 
with the wool outside, they would not have 
been at all cold, even if the cows beside 
which they slept had not kept them warm. 

The family always slept warm, too, for 
father, mother, and all the children slept on 
the great tile stove which occupied the cen¬ 
tre of the larger room, and in this stove the 
fire never went entirely out. The grand¬ 
mother did not sleep on this stove, however. 
The starosta greatly honored his old mother, 
and to her he gave the second room in the 
house for herself alone. She had a stove 
all to herself, and slept on it all alone, ex¬ 
cept when the little boy ran away from the 
great room and cuddled down beside his 
grandmother for the night. 

She did not tell him stories then, for night 
is the time for sleeping, and grandmother 
was tired after a long day in the fields. But 
on rainy days, when the starosta would not 
permit his old mother to do field work, 
3 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


grandmother would sit at home and spin, 
and then for happy times! 

It was growing cold weather; the harvests 
were all in, the rains had begun, and grand¬ 
mother was sitting by the stove, with her 
distaff and spindle and a basket of wool by 
her side. In came the little boy, settled him¬ 
self in a snug place on the stove-top, and 
said, very coaxingly: 

“Tell me a story, little grandmamma! ” 
The grandmother ceased the song she had 
been singing, and answered: 

“ Shall I tell you about the Wolf that 
wanted to be a Roman? ” 

“ Oh, yes, yes! ” exclaimed the little boy. 
“Tell me about the wolf! ” 

So the grandmother began. 

THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 

Once upon a time, Isegrim, the Wolf, sat 
in the forest and thought to himself, “ Why 
should I be a wolf and go around devour- 
4 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 

ing the other beasts? It would be much 
better for me to go out into the world. 
What if I should go to Rome? Yes, that’s 
it, I will be a Roman! ” 

Off he set in the best of spirits, and on 
the way he met a Sow. The Sow bristled 
up in terror, but Isegrim cried out, “ Don’t 
be frightened, Gruntelind! I am done with 
Gruntelinds forever. I am going to be a 
Roman.” 

Not long after he met a He-goat. The 
He-goat was greatly frightened when he 
saw Isegrim, but the Wolf cried out, “ Don’t 
be frightened, Longbeard! I’m not bother¬ 
ing myself with Longbeards. I am going 
to be a Roman.” 

Next he met an old Mare. She was hor¬ 
ribly frightened, but he quieted her, saying, 
“Don’t be frightened, Skinny-bones! I 
don’t waste my time with old jades like you. 
I am going to be a Roman.” 

On went the Wolf for two whole days, 
5 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


when he began to feel a mighty hunger. So 
he turned back, and presently he came to 
the pasture where he had met the old Mare. 
Now was the Mare terrified. She quaked 
with fear, and well she might, for the Wolf 
said to her, “ Mare, I am going to devour 
you!” 

“ How dare you say so! ” exclaimed the 
Mare. “ You told me you were a Roman.” 

“ Roman here or Roman there,” snarled 
Isegrim, “ I am going to gnaw your bones.” 

“Very well,” returned the Mare; “if 
there is no help for it, come again by and 
by, when I am plumper and juicier.” 

So the Wolf went on his way. Presently 
he met the He-goat. “ Ho, Longbeard,” 
cried he, “ your time has come! ” 

“I dare you to touch me!” replied the 
He-goat. “You are not a Wolf; you are 
a Roman.” 

“ Roman here or Roman there,” retorted 
the Wolf, “ I shall dine on you to-day.” 

6 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


“ What must be, must,” replied the He- 
goat; “ but since you are bound to eat me, 
just grant me life till the woods are green 
again.” 

The Wolf was beguiled, and on he went 
till he met the Sow. “ Listen to me, Grunt- 
elind,” said he; “ I am going to make short 
work with you now.” 

“ You daren’t do it,” replied the Sow. 
“You are no Wolf; you are a noble Ro¬ 
man.” 

“ Roman here or Roman there,” said the 
Wolf, “ I am bound to eat you.” 

“ Very well,” replied the Sow; “ since you 
insist, come another day, when I am fatter.” 

The Wolf consented, and away he went 
to look for that Mare again. 

“Listen now, Skinny-bones,” said he; 
“ you are to die on the spot.” 

“ If your mind is really made up,” replied 
the Mare, “ I have nothing to say; but first 
look at my left hind hoof, for my master 
7 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


had me shod the other day, and the smith 
marked my age upon the horseshoe. Read 
how old I am, and then you will be able to 
boast what an old Mare you have eaten.” 

The Wolf thought this a fine plan, and 
he drew near. Then the Mare raised her 
hoof and dealt Isegrim so smart a blow on 
the head that he ran off with a cracked 
crown, as fast as his heels could carry him. 

On the way he met the Sow. “ See here, 
Gruntelind,” he said to her, “ there is no 
escape this time.” 

“ Very well,” replied the Sow; “ since 
there is no help for it, just lead me around 
by the ear until I say good-by to all my 
kith and kin.” 

Isegrim seized her by the ear, when she 
set up so shrill and piteous a squealing that 
the Swine all rushed to the spot from far 
and near, and falling upon Cousin Isegrim 
they almost tore him in pieces. Mangled 
and bleeding, he made his escape, and meet- 
8 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


ing the He-goat, he said, “ Your time has 
come.” 

“ If that is the case,” replied the He-goat, 
“ just stand in the middle of the field, with 
your mouth wide open, and my brothers and 
I will jump down your throat, one after the 
other. Then you won’t be hungry again for 
many a long day.” 

This plan greatly pleased Isegrim, and he 
took his place in the middle of the field, 
with his mouth wide open. Then all the 
He-goats ran against him, butting at him, 
before and behind, till he could neither hear 
nor see, and it was all he could do to escape 
to the nearest wood. 

There he spied a Cock, and said to him, 
“ Now, see here, Gockeling, I am not to be 
fooled by you, at any rate.” 

The Cock replied, “ Just look at me once, 
how thin I am and what big feathers I have. 
Why should you bother to pluck me? It 
would save you a world of trouble if I got 
9 


THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


up into this tree and just flew down your 
throat.” 

Isegrim thought this a fine idea. So 
Gockeling flew up into the tree. He hopped 
from branch to branch until he was in per¬ 
fect safety, and then crowed loud and lustily 
to proclaim his escape. 

At this the Wolf sank into deep thought. 
“ My father lived comfortably,” he said to 
himself, “ and was never a Roman; neither 
should I have been one—it has served me 
right. My father was no expert in Mares’ 
paces, yet; he lived in peace and happiness; 
neither should I have been one—it has served 
me right. My father was no Swine musi¬ 
cian, but he lived well for all that; neither 
should I have been one—it has served me 
right. My father never measured a field 
with He-goats, but he grew gray honorably 
for all that; only one thing rankles—that 
this scoundrel up in the tree crows over me 
so. It would be none too good for me if 
10 



Took his place in the middle of the field, with his mouth 
wide open 














THE WOLF AS A ROMAN 


some one should jump from behind the tree 
and knock me over the head.” 

As luck would have it, a moujik was 
standing behind the tree, and he fetched 
the Wolf a blow on the head with his axe. 
Then Isegrim cried out with his last breath, 
“ Well, I vow, on this blessed day one can’t 
even talk to himself without being made 
sorry for it! ” 

The little boy was thoughtful for a few 
minutes. “ Did you know that Wolf, little 
grandma? ” he asked at length. 

“ No, not I,” replied the grandmother; 
“ it was my great-great-grandmother who 
knew him.” 


II 


CHAPTER II 


THE MOTHER’S FETE-DAY 

I T was the fete-day of the little boy’s 
mother, and she was dressed in the beau¬ 
tiful clothes that had been her mother’s and 
her grandmother’s festival clothes. Her 
gown, which she called her sarafam , was of 
a lovely light-blue stuff, and on her head 
she wore a diadem of gold, all studded with 
little pearls. Many of the village people 
came to kiss the baboushka’s hand and to 
bring her gifts, so that the house was quite 
crowded with people drinking coffee and 
talking loudly. When the baboushha went 
to church to offer thanks she put on her 
long fur-trimmed chougaii (we should call 
it a coat), and over that a thick, wadded 
12 


THE MOTHER’S FETE-DAY 


duchegreika , or hug-me-tight. It was a 
cold day, and she was not too warmly 
clothed, but if her fete-day had come in the 
heat of summer she would have worn these 
things just the same. 

The little boy went to church with his 
mother, and when they came back he was 
very hungry. But the feast-table was not 
yet spread, for the starosta and the older 
children were still in the fields pulling stub¬ 
ble. The grandmother was not in the fields, 
for the day was too cold, so the little boy 
went into her room. She had on her fes¬ 
tival clothes in honor of the feast, but she 
was spinning as usual and humming a little 
song. 

“ I’m so hungry, grandmother,” said the 
little boy. 

“ Would you spoil the feast by eating 
now? ” asked the grandmother. “ The best 
way is to forget all about being hungry till 
the feast begins.” 


13 


THE SICK LION 


“ How can I forget? ” asked the little 
boy. “ My mouth cries ‘ food! 5 ” 

“If little grandmother puts a story in 
your ears will your mouth cease crying? ” 
asked the grandmother. 

“ Oh, yes, yes! ” cried the little boy. 

So grandmother told the story of 

THE SICK LION 

Once upon a time a Lion lay sick in 
his den. Master Petz, the Bear, called to 
pay his respects; whereupon the Lion thus 
spoke: 

“ Dear Bruin, tell me the honest truth— 
is it, or is it not very close in this den? ” 

“Yes, indeed!” replied Petz, “it does 
smell horribly here.” Upon this the Lion 
flew into a rage and tore the Bear into a 
thousand pieces. 

Lampe, the Hare, was standing near the 
door of the den, and observed this mishap. 
Tremblingly he approached the Lion, who 
14 


THE SICK LION 


asked him, “ Tell me, dear Lampe, is it not 
close in my den? ” 

“ Oh, dear, no! ” replied the Hare; “ why 
should it be close? On the contrary, the air 
seems to me delightfully fresh.” 

“You lie!” retorted the Lion, in high 
dudgeon; “it is not delightfully fresh; on 
the contrary, it is disgustingly close,” and 
he tore the Hare limb from limb. 

Isegrim, the Wolf, saw and heard all this, 
for he was standing near the door of the 
den. He stepped in, and bowed low before 
the Lion, who immediately put the same 
question to him, “See here, Isegrim, tell me 
truly and honestly, is it close in my den or 
not? ” 

“Neither, sire!” replied the obsequious 
Wolf. 

“ Oh, you good-for-nothing liar! ” roared 
the Lion, “ it must be either one or the other; 
either it is close or it is not,” and he seized 
him and tore him to pieces. 

15 


THE SICK LION 


Reinecke, the Fox, was looking in from 
outside, and now he drew near to pay his re¬ 
spects. So the Lion asked him, “See here, 
Master Reinecke, do you tell me now, is it 
close in my den or not? ” 

“ Pardon me, august monarch,” replied 
Reinecke very humbly, “ but by all I hold 
blessed I am not able to tell you, for I have 
taken such a cold that, upon honor, I cannot 
smell. But I do hate a lie from the bottom 
of my heart.” 

And the Lion spared Reinecke’s life be¬ 
cause he had such a clever wit. 

“ Will the Baby and the little boy gra¬ 
ciously come to supper? ” asked the cow-herd 
woman, opening the door. “ The gracious 
baboushka s feast is ready.” 

So the little boy and his grandmother, 
whom they call the Baby in Russia, gayly 
went in to the feast. 


16 


CHAPTER III 


SATURDAY AFTERNOON 

I T was Saturday afternoon, and the little 
boy had been with his mother to the vil¬ 
lage vapor-bath. After that he had been 
dressed in his Sunday clothes. His white 
shirt, which he called his roubachka, hung 
outside of his best porthi , or loose, colored 
trousers. His legs were wound round with 
many bands of colored cloth, called onon- 
tchi, and on his feet he wore bachmahi , or 
shoes. When he grew to be a man he would 
wear very high, large-topped sapoghi , with 
his trousers tucked into them, like his father, 
and then he would not need onontchi on his 
legs. But he was only a little boy yet. 

The popod'ya had come to call on his 
mother. She was the priest’s wife, and was 
17 


SATURDAY AFTERNOON 


very old, and the little boy did not care for 
what she and his mother were talking about. 
So he stole away into his grandmother’s 
room. The grandmother was kneeling be¬ 
fore the ikon , the sacred picture of the Vir¬ 
gin and Child, which hung on the wall with 
a tiny lamp lighted before it. The little 
boy would not disturb his grandmother 
while she was saying her Saturday evening 
prayer, but he hoped she would not be long. 
Perhaps she was almost through, for pres¬ 
ently she rose from her knees, lifting her¬ 
self by her stick. The little boy ran to help 
her, and led her to the stove. She sat down 
upon it, for her knees were cold from the 
clay floor, and the little boy climbed up be¬ 
side her. 

“ Now the work is all done, little grand¬ 
ma,” he said, putting his hands on either 
side of her face, “ and you can tell me a 
long story, can’t you? ” 

“Hum, hum!” said the grandmother, 
18 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


pretending to look cross. “ Why should I 
tell you a long story? ” 

“ Oh, because I have my Sunday clothes 
on, and must not play in the dirt! ” replied 
the little boy. “ Don’t you know a long 
story, grandma? ” 

“ Would you like to hear about 

“WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM?” 

asked the Baby . 

“ Yes, indeed, that I should!” cried the 
little boy. 

So the grandmother began: 

Once upon a time there was a mouyik 
who had a perfectly white Dog, which he 
called Whiteling. Now Whiteling had 
struck up a great friendship with Isegrim, 
the Wolf, and one day each made a solemn 
compact never to betray the other in any of 
their stealings. 

Not long after, Isegrim said to White¬ 
ling one day, “ I intend to make a call upon 
19 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


your master’s swine to-night; so do you keep 
no watch, but just lie as still as possible, and 
don’t wake up the whole family with your 
barking, as you usually do, for you know 
that they will move heaven and earth to 
capture me.” 

“ Kill all the swine, if you like,” replied 
Whiteling; “ I won’t betray you.” 

“ A word is enough, brother; I shall be 
there,” said Isegrim; and so the friends 
parted. 

Punctually at nightfall Isegrim appeared 
and greeted Whiteling heartily, saying, “ I 
gave you my word, and as you see, here 
I am.” 

“ Get to work, then,” replied Whiteling; 
“ you have nothing to fear from me.” 

Isegrim crept cautiously to the swine-pen. 
He had all the work in the world to get in, 
and once in, he had hardly begun his meal 
when the swine broke out in fearful squeal- 
ings and gruntings. Whiteling, at the 
20 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 

house-door, no sooner heard the noise than 
he began to bark and whine with all his 
might, waking all the family with his noise. 

“ What makes our Whiteling howl so? ” 
they said. “ We must go out and see what 
the trouble is.” 

So all the family went out, and hearing 
the squealing of the swine, they hastened to 
the pigpen. Peeping in, they saw the Wolf 
and set upon him with clubs and fists, be¬ 
laboring him so soundly that he barely es¬ 
caped with a whole skin. 

Waiting till the family had returned to 
bed, Isegrim crept back, and seizing White- 
ling by the throat, “Aha!” he cried, “I 
have caught you now. You pledged me 
your word not to bark, and you broke your 
promise. No, I’ll never forgive you. Just 
look at me once, what a plight I’m in.” 

Whiteling began to beg. “ Ah, let me 
go, let me go, dear, sweet brother Isegrim; 
forgive me just this once; I’ll never do it 
21 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


again; come again and steal whenever you 
like; you may be perfectly sure of me! ” 

“ Will you ever play me another such 
trick? ” asked Isegrim. 

“ Never, never again! ” said Whiteling. 

“ Very well, then,” said the Wolf, “ you 
may go free this once; but next time, re¬ 
member, hold your tongue! ” 

A few days later Isegrim paid the swine 
a second visit, but he had hardly crept into 
the pen when Whiteling set up a howl so 
loud and clear that all the household sprang 
out of bed to see what was the matter. A 
second time they found the Wolf, fell upon 
him, and beat him half-dead. The unlucky 
visitor barely escaped with his life, and full 
of wrath, he hid behind the hedge and 
waited till the household were asleep. Then, 
seeing Whiteling before the house-door, he 
cried to him, “Just wait once, Whiteling; 
your last half-hour strikes when you fall 
into my clutches! If you weren’t just where 
22 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


you are, safe at the house-door, I’d soon pay 
you off; but my time will come before long.” 

Again Whiteling began to beg. “ Dear¬ 
est Isegrim, it is indeed true that I have 
brought you into a terrible pickle, but don’t 
kill me; let me go this time. I’ll never do it 
again.” 

Eut the Wolf replied, “ Neither now nor 
ever; you cheated me out of that meal of 
swine’s flesh, and three days from now you 
must meet me in battle. I will summon my 
forces, and do you summon yours—that is, 
if you can muster any. If you don’t show 
up, I’ll soon know where to find you, and 
I’ll drag you there myself! ” 

“ All right,” returned Whiteling, “ come 
what may, I’ll be there without fail.” 

So Isegrim hastened away to get his 
troops together, and meeting the Wild Boar 
he said to him, “ Will you be on my side? 
There is going to be war between me and 
Whiteling three days from now.” 

23 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


“ Oh,” replied the Wild Boar, “ indeed I 
will be on your side! ” 

A little farther Isegrim met Master Petz, 
the Bear, told him the whole matter, and 
begged him to be on his side. Petz most 
cheerfully promised his help. 

Later, he met Reinecke, the Fox, and 
told him the whole story. Reinecke assured 
him that he might certainly count upon his 
help—how could he ever hesitate to stand by 
his old crony against the common enemy? 

Then said Isegrim, “ Now we are quite 
enough; but I must spy out Whiteling and 
learn what forces he has. Then I will let 
you know that we are all ready for war.” 

Isegrim betook himself to Whiteling’s 
house, and standing in the lane looked over 
the hedge. “ Are you ready, Whiteling? ” 
he asked. “ To-morrow is the day.” 

“ I shall be ready,” replied Whiteling in 
a tone of deepest dejection; “ but tell me 
precisely, where is the battle to be? ” 

24 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


“ You knew very well,” replied Isegrim; 
“ yonder, under the tree we agreed upon.” 

“ Very well,” said the Dog, and slunk 
sorrowfully away to the other side of the 
farm-yard. There the Tomcat met him 
and said, “ Why, my dear Whiteling, what 
can be the matter, what makes you so 
sad?” 

And Whiteling answered, “ My dear 
Grimalkin, you don’t know where the shoe 
pinches. Will you come to my aid? ” 

“ Why, what are you talking about? ” 
asked the surprised Cat. 

“ Just think of it,” replied the Dog, “ to¬ 
morrow I have to fight Isegrim; we have 
declared war to the knife.” 

“Oh, oh, my Whiteling, cheer up! I’ll 
stand by you to the death. Just you go to 
friend Quacker, the Drake, and engage his 
help.” 

With a lighter heart Whiteling sought 
friend Quacker and begged his friendly aid. 

25 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


“ To be sure, to be sure; I am your com¬ 
rade. Why should I leave a friend in the 
lurch? Go to friend Ganner, the Gander, 
and ask him if he feels like having a part 
in the war.” 

So said and so done. Whiteling found 
the Gander, explained the aff air and begged 
for his help. “ Of course, why should I not 
be ready to help? Aren’t you our guard 
every night to keep Reinecke from making 
off with us? ” 

“ Now,” said Whiteling, “ I think we are 
strong enough.” 

Early next morning Isegrim met his allies 
upon the battle-field under the appointed 
tree. He hid the Wild Boar beneath a thick 
bed of moss which grew upon the ground, 
and bade Reinecke climb into the tree, say¬ 
ing, “You must be our sentinel, Master. 
Keep watch when Whiteling appears with 
his troop, and give us secret intelligence. 
You, too, Petz, must scramble up the tree, 
26 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


but I will crouch down in ambush behind 
the trunk.” 

Meanwhile Whiteling was also disposing 
his forces. “ Grimalkin and Ganner, you 
are the infantry. I see that your weapon is 
ready, Grimalkin ” (for Grimalkin held his 
tail upright, by way of musket) ; 44 and you, 
Ganner, must hiss your very best. Quacker, 
you shall be the drummer. I reserve to my¬ 
self the command. March according to or¬ 
ders, and fall to when I give the word.” 

So Whiteling and his comrades went 
gayly to the battle—Whiteling and his 
drummer in front, Grimalkin and Ganner 
bringing up the rear. Quacker drummed 
his prettiest — 44 Quack-quack, quack-quack, 
quack-quack! ” The Gander hissed and the 
Tomcat strutted along in dignified silence, 
carrying his tail straight upright like a 
musket. 

When Reinecke perceived the approach¬ 
ing company he cried to Isegrim, 44 Cousin, 
27 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


cousin, here come two soldiers with a drum¬ 
mer and a captain! ” 

“ What’s that you say? ” asked Isegrim in 
dismay. 

“ I say, here come two soldiers with a 
drummer and a captain,” replied Reinecke. 
“ The soldier is loading his gun, he takes 

aim, he is about to fire-” 

“Alas! woe be to us poor fellows,” 
moaned the Wild Boar from under the 
moss. “It’s all over with us! We fight 
with unequal forces! ” 

“ Courage, courage, fellows,” cried Ise¬ 
grim, trying to rally his troops; “ just bear 
yourselves bravely; all is not lost; we’ll make 
short work of them yet! ” 

In the midst of all this confusion White- 
ling and his troops reached the spot unper¬ 
ceived. Grimalkin, catching a glimpse of 
the Wild Boar’s ear sticking out of the 
moss, took it for a mouse, and springing 
upon it, bit into it with his sharp teeth. The 
28 



WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


Wild Boar sprang up in terror and took 
wildly to flight, while Grimalkin, no less 
terrified, scrambled frantically up the tree 
into the very face of Master Petz. The 
Bear, not prepared for this unexpected en¬ 
counter, lost his balance and tumbled to the 
ground, half-killing himself by the fall. 
More frightened than ever, the Tomcat 
scrambled blindly up to the tree-top. 

“ Now, it’s my turn,” thought Reinecke to 
himself, and immediately tumbled down in 
affright. Grimalkin tumbled after, while 
the Drake kept drumming, “ Quack-quack, 
quack-quack, quack-quack,” and Ganner 
hissed with all his might. Thus was Ise- 
grim’s host ignominiously routed. The Wolf 
himself, however, still cowered behind the 
tree, his head buried in the moss. 

When the besiegers had withdrawn, Ise- 
grim’s scattered forces drew together and 
began to count their honorable scars. Said 
Master Petz, “ More dead than alive from 
29 


WHITELING’S WAR WITH ISEGRIM 


my heavy fall, I barely managed to make 
my escape.” 

“ A piece of my ear is gone,” said the 
Boar. “ He cut it off with his sword.” 

“ Let us be thankful, fellows,” concluded 
Reinecke, “ that we are no worse off, for if 
they had been able to fire off one more can¬ 
non we should have been hopelessly lost! ” 

“ I wish I knew that Dog,” said the little 
boy. “ I think he is wiser than our Watch.” 

“ The beasts were wiser those days,” re¬ 
plied the grandmother. “ That was my 
great-great-grandmother’s time.” 


30 


CHAPTER IV 


THE FIRE OF SHAVINGS 

PT1HE snow had fallen heavily, and some 
-■* of the sheep were missing. The two 
moujiks put on their warm sheepskin clothes 
and went to look for them, taking Watch, 
the sheep-dog, with them. The starosta sat 
in the house, making a plough-handle out 
of a tree-branch which he had cut down one 
day long ago because he saw it was the right 
shape for a plough-handle in case he should 
ever need a new one. The little boy gath¬ 
ered up the shavings that fell from under 
the long, two-handled knife. He played 
with them until he was tired of them, and 
then he gathered them all in the skirt of his 
shirt and carried them to his grandmother’s 


room. 


31 


THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

“ I have brought you some shavings to 
make you warm, grandmother,” he said. 

His grandmother opened the stove-door, 
where the fire was smouldering, carefully 
covered up, for fuel is dear. The little boy 
put his shavings in, one by one, and watched 
them as they slowly caught fire and broke 
into a blaze. When they were all burned 
up he went and stood by his grandmother. 

“ Did they make you warm, little grand¬ 
ma? ” he asked. 

44 Nice and warm,” answered the grand¬ 
mother. 4 4 Now, what can I do for you in 
thanks? ” 

44 A story, a story!” cried the little boy, 
climbing upon the stove to be comfortable. 
And the grandmother told the story of 

THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

A Bear, a Boar, and a Fox once went 
into partnership to till a field and raise some 
wheat, that they might earn their bread hon- 
32 


THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

estly. Said the Boar, “ I will break into a 
granary and steal the seed, and with my 
snout I will plough up the field.” 

44 1 will be the sower,” said the Bear; and 
Reinecke added, “ I will spread the earth 
over the seed with my tail.” 

So the field was ploughed and the seed 
sown. By and by came harvest-time, and the 
friends took counsel together as to the reap¬ 
ing. Said the Boar, “ I will cut the grain.” 
Said the Bear, “ I will bind the sheaves.” 
And the Fox said, “ I will glean the scat¬ 
tered ears.” 

The grain was cut and the sheaves set up. 
The next thing was the threshing. Said 
the Boar, “ I will provide the threshing- 
floor.” “ I will carry the sheaves,” said the 
Bear, “ and will do the threshing into the 
bargain.” “ I’ll shake out the sheaves,” said 
the Boar, “ and break off the ears from the 
stalks.” “ I will clear away the chaff with 
my tail,” said the Fox. 

33 


THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

“ I will winnow the grain,” said the Boar, 
“ and separate the straw from the wheat; ” 
and Gossip Petz added, “ And I will attend 
to the dividing.” 

And so the grain was threshed. 

Next came the Bear to do the dividing, 
but he was neither fair nor honest, for he 
gave the Boar all the straw and kept all the 
grain for himself, not leaving the least thing 
for the Fox. At this Reinecke flew into a 
rage and threatened them both with the law, 
saying he would bring the emperor’s officer 
to divide it all fairly and squarely. 

Away he went for the officer, leaving the 
Boar and the Bear greatly terrified. Said 
Master Petz to the Boar, “ Just bury your¬ 
self in the straw, my child, while I clamber 
up into yonder pear-tree.” The Boar at 
once vanished under the straw, while the 
Bear scrambled up into the pear-tree. 

Meanwhile Reinecke set out, and on the 
way he met a Cat, whom he invited to come 
34 


THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

and hunt mice with him upon a certain 
threshing-floor. 

The Cat gladly accepted the invitation, 
for she full well knew that there are plenty 
of mice in a threshing-floor; but on the way 
she kept hunting birds in the bushes along 
the roadside. The Bear, who was watching 
from the pear-tree, espied her from afar, 
and called down to the Boar: 

“We are in a pretty scrape, dear Boar, 
for here comes Master Reinecke and a fear¬ 
ful monster with him. He wears the fur 
coat of a Marten and is killing birds upon 
the wing all along the way.” 

By this time the Bear lost sight of the 
Cat, which had reached the threshing-floor 
under cover of the grass, and was creeping 
about in the straw in search of mice. Full 
of curiosity, the Boar stuck his head out a 
little way to see what was going on; when 
the Cat, mistaking his snout for a mouse, 
sprang forward and buried her claws in it. 

35 


THE BEAR, THE BOAR, AND THE FOX 

At this the Boar gave a fearful grunt, and 
rushed frantically into a neighboring stream, 
while the Bear, who, from the uproar, con¬ 
cluded that the Cat had killed the Boar and 
would seize him next, tumbled headlong 
from the pear-tree in terror, and breaking 
his neck by the fall, perished miserably. 

So Master Reinecke got all the grain and 
the straw into the bargain. 

“ I am glad he got it all,” said the little 
boy. “ It wasn’t fair of Petz and the Boar 
to serve Reinecke that way.” 

“ Master Reinecke is generally able to 
look out for himself,” said the grandmother. 


36 


CHAPTER V 


FROST-BITTEN TOES 

f I THERE was a great shouting and hur- 
rahing in the court, for the moujiks 
had found the sheep and were driving them 
home. The little boy ran out to see them 
come in. They were trembling with cold 
and looked very weak, for they had had 
nothing to eat for two days. They had 
been buried under the snow, and it had taken 
all that time to find them. They were glad 
to go into their pen, and the little boy was 
glad when his father gave him a pail with 
food in it and let him help the moujiks feed 
them. 

The cow-herd woman came to watch. 
“ You should not have come out in bare 
feet,” she said to the little boy. “ Where 
are your bachmakiV 9 

37 


FROST-BITTEN TOES 


“ Your feet are bare,” replied the little 
boy. 

“ I am old and am used to it,” said the 
cow-herd woman. “ You will freeze your 
toes.” 

When the sheep were all fed the little 
boy’s toes began to ache, and he ran into 
the house. “ Keep away from the fire,” 
said his eldest sister, who was weaving at 
the loom in the corner. “ If you go near 
the fire your toes will sting.” 

The little boy’s toes were stinging already, 
and he began to cry. 

“ Run away to grandmother,” said the 
eldest sister. “ She will warm your toes 
with her hands.” 

The grandmother heard the little boy 
crying and she came to the door to see 
what was the matter, for it makes a grand¬ 
mother’s heart ache to hear a child’s cries. 
When she saw the bare toes, white with cold, 
she gathered the little boy up in her arms 
38 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

and carried him to her room. There she sat 
down, far away from the fire, took the cold 
feet in her hands and rubbed them to make 
them warm. Then the little boy stopped 
crying. 

“ They are warm now,” he said. “ But I 
don’t want to get down. It is nice in your 
lap.” 

“ You may sit here while I tell you a 
story,” said the grandmother. “ Then you 
must get down, for I haven’t finished my 
stint of spinning.” 

“I will,” said the little boy; and the 
grandmother told him the story of 

THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, AND THE 
BEAR 

Not far from a Hare’s form a Bear once 
had her den, and Master Lampe often gave 
himself the treat of visiting the den in 
Petz’s absence and teasing the little Petzes. 

“ You dear little birds,” he would say, 
39 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

“ do let me hear your enchanting songs! ” 
And he would spit at them, and make all 
manner of game of them into the bargain. 

Whenever Mrs. Petz came home the 
young ones would bitterly complain how a 
little Hare had been there making game of 
them. At this old Petz waxed very angry, 
and growled, “ Just wait once, wait, Mas¬ 
ter Lampe! I’ll catch you yet and fling 
you into a hole.” 

So Mrs. Petz hid herself in the back of 
the den, and sure enough along came Mas¬ 
ter Lampe and began to tease the young 
bears. No sooner did Mrs. Petz hear him 
than she sprang upon him from her hiding- 
place. But, quick as lightning, Lampe was 
off in the woods, with Mrs. Petz after him. 
Lampe fled through bush and brier, Petz 
always close upon his heels. 

At last Lampe sprang through a cloven 
tree and Petz followed him. Unluckily she 
stuck fast in the narrow cleft and, do what 
40 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

she would, she could not escape from her 
prison. 

Presently a Man came along, and Mrs. 
Petz implored him thus: 

“ All, Man, do set me free! I know 
where there is a hollow tree full of honey 
in the forest; you could bring a great cask 
and fill it as full as you like.” 

“ Are you telling the honest truth? ” 
asked the Man. 

“ The honest truth,” replied Mrs. Petz. 
“ I can make you rich in honey, and all I 
have to say is to give you this warning: 
Never, if you love your own life, do you 
tell a living soul how a miserable little Hare 
made a fool of a strong She-bear.” 

The Man promised her, trust and true, 
and lifting his axe he struck a blow at the 
cloven tree. The tree fell apart, Petz was 
again free, and she at once led the Man to 
the honey-tree. The Man returned home, 
yoked up his oxen, put a cask in the cart, 
41 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

and went to the wood for the honey. 
When he had filled the cask he returned 
home. 

Meantime it had grown dark, and Petz 
crept noiselessly behind the cart and 
crouched down under the peasant’s window, 
saying to herself, “ Just wait, you fellow, 
till I listen a little! ” 

The Man brought the cask of honey into 
the house, and the children, seeing the prize, 
crowded around the father with questions. 
“ O little father, where did you get that 
honey? ” 

“ I found it in the forest, dear children.” 

Then the wife put in her word. “ Tell 
me, father, how did you come by so much 
honey? ” 

And the Man replied, “ Oh, don’t bother 
me! It was an old trotter of a Bear that 
was chasing a little Hare and got stuck fast 
in the cleft of a tree. Then I came along 
and helped her out of the scrape, and for 
42 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

thanks she showed me the hollow tree where 
the honey was. So I brought it home. But 
it served her right, the lazy old fat tramper; 
what business had she chasing a Hare? ” 

Mrs. Petz did not lose a word of all this, 
and she growled to herself, “ Just wait once, 
wait! I’ll be even with you with a ven¬ 
geance for jeering at me.” 

She went away home, and presently the 
Man, wife, and children all went to bed. 
Early next morning the Man got up and 
went out to till his field. He yoked his 
oxen, filled a sack with grain, put it and a 
plough into the cart, and with a “ Gee-up, 
you oxen! ” set out for his field, which lay 
on the edge of the forest. He was just 
about to begin ploughing when Mrs. Petz 
came along. 

“Oho, cousin, so there you are! Didn’t 
you promise me, trust and true, not to say 
a word to mortal soul of what had happened 
to me, and didn’t you go home and tell the 
43 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

whole story to your wife and children? 
Hey?” 

But the Man replied, “ Friend, what an 
idea! I haven’t said a word to any one.” 

“Silence!” interrupted the Bear. “I 
was listening under your window.” 

Then the Man thought to himself, “ Well, 
the cat is out of the bag, sure enough. She 
knows the whole story.” 

“ And now,” said Mrs. Petz, “it is all up 
with you.” 

Now little Master Reinecke was listening 
to all this, and he rustled in the bushes with 
his tail, and cried: 

Man, Man! 

Wit in the head 

And a club in the hand! 

For, in fact, the moujik had a mighty 
ox-goad in his hand, and he stood there 
quaking with fear of the enraged She-bear, 
and trying to contrive how he should get 
44 


the man, the hare, the fox, the bear 

out of the scrape. Reinecke never stopped 
crying: 

Man, Man! 

Wit in the head 

And a club in the hand! 

At this a bright thought struck the Man, 
and he resolved to try his luck. So he 
poured the grain from his sack upon the 
ground and said to Petz: 

“ I am a pious Christian and have not yet 
prepared for death, either by confession or 
penance. So do you, Mrs. Petz, step into 
this sack, and as penance for all my sins I 
will carry you around the field, heavy as 
you are. When I have gone around the 
field two or three times with you on my 
back, you may do with me what you 
like.” 

“ Gracious Heaven,” cried Mrs. Petz, 
“ how high I shall hold my head when 
people say that a man carried me around 
45 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

upon his shoulders! ” But scarcely had she 
crawled into the sack when the Man tied it 
up tight and belabored her head with his 
ox-goad until she gave up the ghost. 

Then Reinecke stepped up to the Man 
and asked, “ And what am I to get, Man, 
for the good counsel I gave you? ” 

“ What shall I give you? ” asked the Man. 
“Will you have geese? ” 

“ No.” 

“ Ducks? ” 

“ No.” 

“ Hens? ” 

“ No.” 

“ Then what the mischief do you want? ” 
“ I want to bite off your nose.” 

At this the man thought to himself, 
“What the dickens! How should I look 
going around without a nose? ” 

Cold sweat broke out all over him, and 
he cried aloud in agony. Reinecke heard 
him, and said, “ Oho, what does this mean? ” 
46 



Step into this sack, . . . and I will carry you around the field 






























































































































































































































































































THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

The Man gave a second and a third cry; 
it startled the Master, and he asked, “ Now 
what’s all this about?” 

“Oh, nothing,” replied the Man; “only 
last evening I fed nine hunting-dogs, and 
they are trying with all their might to get 
out!” 

But Reinecke interrupted him: “ The 
cuckoo take your nose and all the rest of 
you, only don’t let your hunting-dogs come 
out here until I have put my hide in safety! ” 
And away he went, across lots and out of 
sight. 

So the Man saved his nose, and full of 
joy he went home that night, carrying Petz 
with him. 

“ Master Reinecke wasn’t so clever that 
time,” said the little boy. 

“ He is not always clever,” said the grand¬ 
mother. “ But he was very clever when he 
took revenge on Isegrim.” 

47 


THE MAN, THE HARE, THE FOX, THE BEAR 

“Oh, tell me that, tell me that!” cried 
the little boy. 

“ Not now,” said the grandmother. “ Did 
I not tell you that I had not done my stmt 
of spinning? Come this evening after sup¬ 
per and I will tell you. Now run away 
home.” 


48 


CHAPTER VI 


AFTER SUPPER 

T HE little boy could hardly eat at sup¬ 
per-time, and as soon as possible he 
ran to his grandmother’s room. She was 
knitting in the dark, for the stock of can¬ 
dles was getting low, and she could knit 
without looking. 

“ Have you come for the story? ” she 
asked. “ I was expecting you.” 

So the little boy climbed to his place on 
the stove, and the grandmother began the 
story of 

reinecke’s revenge on isegrim 

Once upon a time Reinecke kneaded mud- 
cakes, baked them, and spread them with 
honey. When they were all ready he be- 

49 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 

took himself to the turkey-tenders and 
begged them to give him a turkey in ex¬ 
change for his honey-cakes. The turkey- 
tenders were not to be so easily hoaxed, and 
they sent him to the swine-herds, assuring 
him that the swine-herds would give him a 
sucking pig for his honey-cakes. 

He therefore sought the swine-herds and 
begged for a sucking pig in exchange for 
his cakes. The swine-herds would give him 
none, but sent him to the cow-herds, who 
might give him a calf in exchange for the 
cakes. So he went to the cow-herds and 
begged them to give him a calf and take 
his honey-cakes in exchange. 

The cow-herds declined, and sent him to 
the stable-boys, who would surely give him 
a colt in exchange for the honey-cakes. So 
he went to the stable-boys and offered to 
exchange his honey-cakes for a colt. They 
gave him a beautiful colt and took in ex¬ 
change the honey-cakes. So Reinecke went 
50 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


away, leading the colt, and leaving with the 
stable-boys a strict injunction on no account 
to break one of the cakes until he should 
have disappeared behind a certain hill. 

The stable-boys obeyed the behest, but 
when they afterward tried the cakes and 
broke their teeth upon them, they perceived 
that they were made of clay, and they at 
once set off in pursuit of the Fox. But 
Master Reinecke had so much the start of 
them that they were obliged to turn back, 
weary and overheated, having had their 
trouble for their pains. 

Now when Reinecke reached home he 
made a stall of wicker-work for the colt, and 
devoted himself entirely to the care of him. 
Day after day he brought him green, juicy 
grass and cool, refreshing drink, and when¬ 
ever he brought them he always called to 
the colt in these words: 


51 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


O colt, tender little colt, 
Open the door for me! 
Juicy grass and cooling drink 
Bring I here for thee! 


Then the colt would open the door. Rei- 
necke gave the colt very strict instructions 
on no account to open the door to any other 
voice or words. 

One day Isegrim came. He had often 
heard Reinecke call to the colt to open the 
door, and now he began to call in his coarse 
voice: 


O colt, tender little colt, 
Open the door for me! 
Juicy grass and cooling drink 
Bring I here for thee! 


But the colt at once perceived that this 
was not Reinecke’s voice, and it did not stir 
to open the door. 

Then Isegrim hid himself cunningly be- 
52 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 

hind the stable-wall to wait for a better 
chance. 

Pretty soon along came Reinecke with 
grass and water. As soon as he reached the 
stable he cried in his soft treble voice: 

O colt, tender little colt, 

Open the door for me! 

Juicy grass and cooling drink 
Bring I here for thee! 

The colt recognized the voice, opened the 
door at once, and began to tell how some one 
had been there and asked him to open the 
door, but he had not opened because the 
voice sounded rough. Upon this Reinecke 
said, “ On no account open the door to a 
rough voice, but only to a soft one.” 

The next day, when Reinecke was gone, 
along came Isegrim, who had overheard the 
whole conversation from behind the stable- 
wall. He crouched down as low as possible, 
and cried, in a very soft voice: 

53 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


O colt, tender little colt, 

Open the door for me! 

Juicy grass and cooling drink 
Bring I here for thee! 

The unhappy colt was deceived and 
opened the door. Alas! Isegrim fell upon 
him, seized him by the throat, and ate him 
up—all but the head and the tail, which he 
left lying there. Then he made off, having 
closed the door behind him, that nothing 
might be seen from without. 

When Reinecke came home he began to 
call, as usual: 

O colt, tender little colt. 

Open the door for me! 

Juicy grass and cooling drink 
Bring I here for thee! 

But no one asked him in nor opened the 
door. So he peeped in between the osiers, 
and when he saw nothing in the stall but 
the colt’s head and tail he knew all that had 
54 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


happened and had not the least doubt as to 
who had brought this great misfortune upon 
him. He tore the door open and set up a 
long, woe-begone howl. Then he went out 
quite heart-broken and laid himself down in 
the road for dead. 

After a while a man came by in a wagon, 
and finding Reinecke in the road he picked 
him up and threw him into the wagon, in¬ 
tending to strip off his skin as soon as he 
reached home. Now this man had three 
cheeses in a knapsack in his wagon, and 
presently Reinecke roused himself from his 
feigned death, arose softly, stole the three 
cheeses out of the knapsack, and made off. 
As soon as he had reached a safe distance 
he devoured two of the cheeses and went on 
his way, holding the third under his chin. 

In the course of his travels he met friend 
Isegrim, who had eaten his beloved colt. 
Isegrim no sooner saw Reinecke with the 
cheese than his mouth began to water, and 
55 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


he asked him how he had come by it. Then 
Reinecke, truthful as usual, replied that he 
had sucked it up out of a brook. 

“ And where may that brook be found? ” 
asked Isegrim hastily. 

“Follow me,” answered Reinecke; “I 
will lead you to it.” 

Now it happened that this meeting took 
place at the full of the moon, about mid¬ 
night, and a beautiful, star-bestrewn sky 
shed a magical half-darkness over every¬ 
thing. Reinecke led Isegrim to a brook 
and, showing him the reflection of the moon 
mirrored in the flowing water, said: 

“ Do you see that great cheese there in 
the water? Now suck up the water in great 
gulps and you will suck up the cheese at 
last, just as I did.” 

So simple Isegrim sucked up the water 
in great gulps, until it began to run out at 
his ears. Reinecke very kindly plugged up 
his ears and cried to him: 


56 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


“ Keep on sucking, dear Isegrim; you’ll 
soon have it! ” 

Simple Isegrim went at it again, and 
sucked until the water ran out of his eyes. 
At once Reinecke stopped up his eyes, cry¬ 
ing again: 

“ Keep on, dear Isegrim, you’ll soon have 
it now! ” 

Poor Isegrim sucked on, until the water 
ran out at his nose. Then Reinecke stopped 
up his nose and climbed upon his back, say¬ 
ing he was sick and could not walk, and 
Isegrim must carry him. 

The Wolf, in very woful plight, set out 
to carry the Fox, when Reinecke tuned up 
and sang: 

The sick is carrying the well! 

The sick is carrying the well! 

And he kept on repeating the same words 
until Isegrim asked: 

“ What’s that you’re singing, cousin? ” 
57 


REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


“Nothing, nothing, dear Isegrim; they 
are only the fantasies of illness! ” and he 
kept up his song: 

The sick is carrying the well! 

The sick is carrying the well! 

So it went on till they came to a house 
where a wedding was being celebrated. 
When the wedding-guests heard Reinecke’s 
song they came out of the house and praised 
his singing. Thereupon he said that he 
could sing a better song than that if they 
would let him go into the house and up into 
the loft. To this they agreed. 

When Isegrim, with all the trouble in the 
world, had carried Reinecke up into the 
loft, which was floored only with loose 
planks, then Reinecke opened all the places 
he had plugged up, and the water ran out 
of Isegrim’s eyes and ears and nose and 
poured down through the cracks upon the 
wedding-guests below. The guests ran nim- 
58 



REINECKE’S REVENGE ON ISEGRIM 


bly up into the loft, but Reinecke still more 
nimbly made his escape through the win¬ 
dow, while Isegrim was half-beaten to death 
by the enraged wedding-guests and his body 
thrown out into the road. 

Then Reinecke came creeping back and 
taunted Isegrim. 44 This long time I have 
been wearing out shoe-leather to get the 
best of you, because you ate up my colt! ” 

And with these words away he went, 
leaving Isegrim to his fate. 

44 That served Isegrim right,” said the lit¬ 
tle boy. 44 He had no business to eat up 
Reinecke’s little colt.” 


59 


CHAPTER VII 


THE SNOWY DAY 

T HE grandmother sat in her room spin¬ 
ning, and singing a sad little song. 
Grandmother’s songs were always sad, for 
that is the way with the songs of the Rus¬ 
sian peasant women, whose lives are very 
hard. But the little boy had never heard 
any other kind, and he was very fond of 
hearing his grandmother sing. He was 
lying on the stove, watching her spin, for it 
was still snowing, and he was tired of play¬ 
ing alone in the court. The snow was so 
deep now that none of the mothers would 
let their little children go into the street. 
The big children were all at work. Only 
little children play every day in Russia. 
The big children work, except on holidays. 
60 


THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG 

“ Do you know any more stories about 
Master Beinecke, little grandma? ” the lit¬ 
tle boy finally asked. 

“ Perhaps I do,” replied the grandmother. 
“ Let me see; did I ever tell you about 

“ THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG?” 

“ No,” said the little boy. “ Do tell that, 
please! ” 

So the grandmother began: 

Once upon a time there was a Bird which 
built her nest in a hedge, laid her eggs 
there, and began to brood over them. Now 
a little Fox got wind of the matter, and he 
thought to himself, “ Aha! there’s a fine 
breakfast for me! ” So he left the Bird to 
brood over her eggs, waiting for the time 
when the young ones should hatch out. 

When that time came he paid a visit to 
the Bird, which was singing gayly in the 
hedge, and said to her: 

61 



THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG 

“ Good-morning, dear cousin. Oh, how 
beautiful you are and how sweet is your 
song! But still more enticing are your 
young ones in the nest, and I mean to eat 
them up! ” 

The little Bird answered, smiling, “ Ah, 
ah, you are not as clever as I thought you, 
if you are thinking of eating these tiny 
birds! They would not make you a mouth¬ 
ful. Just wait awhile till they are grown; 
then come, and you may eat both them 
and me.” 

So the Bird appointed a day, and Rei- 
necke went off in high glee, whistling 
merrily. 

In the meantime the Bird went to a 
Dog and promised him a delicious meal— 
nothing other than Reineeke, in fact—tell¬ 
ing him that he had nothing to do but hide 
in the bushes on the appointed day, and he 
could easily master the Master. The Dog 
smiled blissfully at the news, saying: 

62 


THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG 

“ This is what I call a stroke of luck! 
I’ll tell you what, little Bird, I’ll hide in 
the bushes, and when Reinecke comes, do 
you beg him to let you sing one last song. 
Then perch yourself on a twig and sing 
out loud and clear. That shall be the sig¬ 
nal for me, and I will spring out of my 
ambush, and—snap!—all will be over with 
Master Reinecke.” 

When the appointed day arrived Reinecke 
came gleefully along, trolling this lay: 

“ Fat little birds are right good cheer. 

So here I am, my Gossip dear! 

Well, Gossip, how goes it? ” 

“ As well as possible,” answered the little 
Bird. “ What I have promised I will per¬ 
form; I have only one last boon to crave: 
let me sing my favorite song just once 
more! ” 

“ Sing away, for all I care,” answered 
Reinecke; “ only make it short.” 

63 




THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG 

So the little Bird perched herself upon a 
twig and began her song. In a twinkling 
the Dog rushed out upon Reinecke, but the 
Master was on the alert and took to flight, 
with the Dog close upon his heels. At last 
Reinecke took refuge in a hole, while the 
Dog hid himself at the entrance, keeping 
up a sharp lookout. 

Then Reinecke began to talk to himself, 
and said to his feet: 

“Well, my fine feet, how have you got 
on?” 

“Finely,” answered the feet; “we did 
our very best to outrun the Dog.” 

“Good, good! You deserve all praise! 
And you, my good ears, how did you be¬ 
have yourselves? ” 

“ Very well; we listened most intently to 
know whether that dreadful Dog was close 
behind us.” 

“Good! That was gallant! And how 
did you behave, my dear, sweet eyes? ” 

64 


THE BIRD, THE FOX, AND THE DOG 

“ Oh, we spied around in every direction 
to discover the first hole!” 

“ Bravo! That was good of you.” Then 
Reinecke looked at his long tail and asked: 

“ And how is it with you, my beautiful, 
long, bushy tail? ” 

And the tail answered, “Very badly; I 
am your steering rudder, and you rushed 
along so unmercifully, dragging me through 
bush and brier, that I am miserably scratched 
and torn. Really, I should not have been 
worse off if the Dog had caught me.” 

“ Aha! ” cried Reinecke, in high displeas¬ 
ure, “ so you are my open enemy, are you? 
All the others are faithful; you alone 
would willingly have betrayed me. Out 
with you, out, my declared foe! You shall 
no longer stay under the same roof with 
me!” 

So Reinecke thrust his tail out of the hole. 
Snap!—the Dog had it between his teeth, 
dragged the Fox out of his retreat, tore him 
65 


THE FOX AND THE DOVE 


in pieces, and was thus rewarded for all his 
trouble. And the little birds were rid of 
their enemy. 

“ It was not nice of Reinecke to want to 
eat little birds,” said the little boy. u I 
think he deserved to be punished.” 

“ He got off without punishment another 
time,” observed the grandmother. 

“ How was that? ” asked the little boy 
eagerly. “ Won’t you tell me that story? 
Do! It is not supper-time.” 

“ No, it is not supper-time, and the story 
is a short one,” said the grandmother. “ So 
I will tell you about 

“ THE FOX AND THE DOVE ” 

Once upon a time there was a Dove which 
built her nest in a high tree. Every year, 
about the time when her young ones were 
beginning to get feathers, Reinecke would 
come along and say to the Dove: 

66 


THE FOX AND THE DOVE 


“ Give me your young ones to eat; throw 
them down to me of your own accord, or I 
will gobble you up as well as them! ” 

The Dove, frightened at the threat, would 
throw down the young birds. Thus it had 
happened year after year. 

Now one day, as the Dove sat most mel¬ 
ancholy upon her nest, a Great Bird flew 
up and asked why she was so sad and down¬ 
cast. And the Dove answered that it was 
because Reinecke would soon come and eat 
up her young ones. 

Upon this the Great Bird replied, “ Oh, 
you goose! Why do you throw them down 
to him? Just bid your good friend to please 
give himself the trouble to come after them. 
Then you’ll soon see him sneak away with 
his tail between his legs, for Reinecke can¬ 
not climb a tree.” 

So when the time came round and Rei¬ 
necke again presented himself, the Dove 
said to him, “ If you want meat for dinner, 
67 


THE FOX AND THE DOVE 


just be so kind as to come up and help 
yourself.” 

When the Fox saw that he must go 
away empty he asked the Dove who had 
counselled her to speak thus, and she an¬ 
swered : 

“ That Great Bird that has a nest yon¬ 
der near the stream.” 

Reinecke at once betook himself to the 
stream and remonstrated with that Great 
Bird for building his nest in so exposed a 
place, asking what he did in case of a high 
wind. 

The Great Bird answered, “ When the 
wind blows from the right I turn to the left; 
when it blows from the left I turn to the 
right.” 

“ But what do you do when it blows from 
all sides? ” asked the Fox. 

“ Then I stick my head under my wing,” 
said the Great Bird, showing how he did 
it. But quick as a wink, when the Great 
68 


THE FOX AND THE DOVE 


Bird stuck his head under his wing, the 
Master sprang upon him and seized him, 
saying: 

“You know how to give counsel to others, 
but not to advise yourself! ” 

So he ate him up. 

The little boy pondered this story for a 
while. At last he said, “ Grandmother, why 
did that Great Bird say that Reinecke could 
not climb a tree? He has climbed a tree a 
great many times.” 

“ This one was not a story of this mir,” 
replied the grandmother. “ It is a story 
from another mir , where my mother’s moth¬ 
er was born. The foxes there are different.” 


69 


CHAPTER VIII 


THE ELECTION MEETING 

T HERE were many men gathered in 
the little boy’s house, for the time of 
the zemstvo was drawing near, and the men 
of the village must choose one of their num¬ 
ber to go away to the large city which was 
the capital of the district to help make laws 
for the district. That is what the zemstvo 
is for. The noblemen go, of course, and 
every village chooses one villager to go. 

They met in the little boy’s house to 
choose their delegate, partly because the 
little boy’s father was starosta, and partly 
because his house was the largest. Though 
they were many, there was room for them 
all on the bench of masonry that ran around 
the four walls of the room, and was covered 
70 


THE ELECTION MEETING 


in the most honorable places with bright 
calico. It was a very cold day, and the 
bench was as far as possible from the stove, 
but they were not cold, for the chinks be¬ 
tween the upright boards which made the 
walls of the starostas house were well 
stopped with tow, and, besides, the men all 
had on their warm kaftans , or over-blouses, 
and their fur-lined boots. 

There was a great deal of talking, and 
the little boy’s mother and sisters were very 
busy with the samovar, making tea and 
handing it round. They had to be very 
careful to keep the water in the samovar 
boiling madly, for tea is not good unless it 
scalds your mouth. At least so they think 
in the little boy’s village. 

The little boy had been told that he must 
keep very still; but it is as hard to keep a 
little Russian boy still as a little American 
boy, for both are very fond of play. The 
little boy did not find it amusing, and 
71 


THE ELECTION MEETING 


presently he crept very quietly toward the 
door. 

44 Where are you going?” asked his 
mother. 

44 To see grandmamma,” answered the 
little boy. 

44 Be careful not to disturb her; she is 
busy,” said the mother. 

The little boy ran quickly out of the room. 

The grandmother was indeed busy. She 
had her short skirt turned back, a short- 
handled broom of twigs in her hand, a great 
earthen jar of water beside her, and she was 
hard at work scrubbing the floor. 

44 Wipe your feet very clean,” she said, 
44 and don’t bring dirt upon my nice floor.” 

The little boy wiped his feet very clean, 
and tiptoed across to the stove. It was 
really quite amusing to watch his grand¬ 
mother scrub, especially when the water 
made little pools in the hollows, worn by 
many years of walking over the clay floor, 
72 


THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG 

and she had to flirt it out with little whisks 
of the broom. He watched her very quietly 
until she had shaken out her broom and 
emptied the jar into a great tub in the court. 
Then she came back and sank heavily into 
her chair, saying: 

“ Ouf! little grandmother is tired!” 

“ Too tired to spin, little grandma! ” ex¬ 
claimed the little boy eagerly. 

The grandmother smiled. “ But not too 
tired for a story—is that what the little boy 
means? ” 

“ Oh, you’re not, you’re not!” cried the 
little boy gleefully. 

“ Listen then, and I will tell you about 
“ THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG ” 

A Hedgehog met Master Reinecke in a 
field, and said to him, “Hello, Master! 
Whither away? ” 

“Oh, I’m just loafing around!” an¬ 
swered the Fox. 


73 


THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG 


“ Tell me, now,” said Reinecke after a 
while to the Hedgehog, “ how manifold is 
your understanding? ” 

“ Threefold,” answered the Hedgehog. 

“ Why, how is that? ” asked the Fox. 

“ Why, you see, I have one sense above, 
one below, and the third everywhere,” re¬ 
plied the Hedgehog; and added, “ And how 
manifold is your understanding? ” 

“ Oh, mine is seventy-sevenfold,” an¬ 
swered the Fox. 

“ Well, well! ” said the Hedgehog. 

Thereupon they walked along through 
the fields, and so eagerly were they talking 
that they gave no heed to the way, and pres¬ 
ently stumbled into a Wolf’s den. Then 
was good counsel precious! How should 
they ever get out of this scrape? 

Said Reinecke to the Hedgehog, “ Come 
now, search around in your head-piece for a 
means of getting out of this pickle.” 

“ I should have done that before,” an- 
74 


THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG 


swered the Hedgehog*, “ but I was afraid 
that by and by you would curse me. How 
shall I, a little Hedgehog, with only a 
threefold understanding, devise anything 
better than you, who have a seventy-seven¬ 
fold understanding? ” 

However, after talking back and forth a 
long time, the Hedgehog made this sugges¬ 
tion, “ Say, Reinecke, just seize me by the 
ear and throw me up out of the den, because 
I am the smaller.” 

“ Yes, but how shall I get out? ” 

“ Oh, just stick up your tail and I will 
pull you out! ” 

So Reinecke seized the Hedgehog by the 
ear and tossed him up out of the den. Then 
he called upon him to keep his word. 
“ Hello there, Gossip, now pull me out!” 

“ Do you know what,” answered the 
Hedgehog, “ I’ll tell you something. I 
have only a threefold understanding, and 
yet I found a way of helping myself. Now 
75 


THE FOX AND THE HEDGEHOG 


do you help yourself with your seventy- 
sevenfold understanding.” 

By this time a moujik came along, and 
finding the Fox in the den he made short 
work with him. But the Hedgehog crept 
away through the thicket with his threefold 
understanding, while Reinecke, with all his 
seventy-sevenfold understanding, was car¬ 
ried off by the moujik . 

“ Reinecke was too proud of himself,” 
said the little boy. 

“ It is a great sin to be proud,” observed 
the grandmother. “ The pop said so on 
Sunday in church.” 

There was a pause. Then the little boy 
said coaxingly: 

“You are tired yet, little grandmother! ” 

“ It was a short story,” replied the grand¬ 
mother, patting the little boy on the shoul¬ 
der, “ and grandmother is a little tired still. 
She will tell you the story of 
76 


REINECKE AND GOCKELING, THE COCK 


MASTER REINECKE AND GOCKELING, THE 
COCK ” 

Once upon a time, Reinecke, the Fox, 
met Gockeling, the Cock, and said to him, 
“ Come, show me how your hens cackle! ” 

The Cock, quite willing, stretched out his 
neck and began to crow, when in a trice 
Reinecke pounced upon him and seized him 
by the throat. 

“O Reinecke!” cried the Cock, “first 
give thanks to God, who has sent you so 
good a meal! ” 

And Reinecke fell into the Cock’s trap, 
for he stood upon his hind legs and began to 
give thanks. Quick as thought the Cock 
flew up into the nearest tree, and cried to 
Reinecke: 

“ Well, cousin, how does my fresh meat 
taste? ” 

“ That was very clever of the Cock,” 

77 


THE DISAPPOINTED BEAR 


said the little boy. “But, grandmother, I 
don’t think that Fox belonged to our mir, 
for he was not at all clever. He must 
have belonged to your mother’s mother’s 
mir.” 

44 You are perfectly right,” replied the 
grandmother. “ That is a story from her 
mir. And as it is a very short story, I shall 
tell you just one more.” 

So the grandmother told the story of 

THE DISAPPOINTED BEAR 

Once upon a time a little old woman, who 
was walking in the forest, climbed up into 
a wild-cherry tree to gather cherries. Now 
a Bear espied her, and he came under the 
tree and cried, 44 Come down, old woman, 
that I may eat you! ” 

44 Go along with you! ” answered the old 
woman. 44 Why should you eat a scrawny 
old woman like me? Here, gnaw upon my 
shoe till I come down, and I will take you 
78 


THE DISAPPOINTED BEAR 


to my house; I have two little children there, 
named Janko and Mirko; they will make 
you a right savory dish. So have patience 
till you get them.” 

So said the little old woman and threw 
down one of her shoes. Master Petz gnawed 
and gnawed upon it, but the more he gnawed 
the hungrier he grew. Greatly enraged, he 
screamed up to the old woman: 

“ Come down, you old wench, and let me 
eat you! ” 

“ Just wait a little longer, till the old 
wench has gathered enough cherries,” she 
answered. “ Here, gnaw this other shoe 
awhile; she’ll soon come down and show you 
the way to her house.” So saying, she threw 
down the other shoe. 

When Petz found that the second shoe 
was no juicier than the first he made no 
further effort, but contented himself with 
thinking of the fat little children at the old 
woman’s house. When she had gathered 
79 


THE DISAPPOINTED BEAR 


cherries enough, down she came and went 
home, the Bear tramping along behind her. 

When they reached the house the old 
woman said, “I’ll tell you what, first let me 
give the children a good supper, that they 
may be all the fatter; and meanwhile do you 
run about till evening to get up a better 
appetite.” 

So Petz went away and ran about in the 
woods all the rest of the day, and at evening 
he came back to the hut. 

“Here I am, little mother!” he cried; 
“ now bring out Janko and Mirko, and see 
me polish them off. I am starving to 
death! ” 

“Oho!” answered the little old woman 
from within, “ Janko has made the door 
fast with bolts, and I have just put Mirko 
to sleep. I couldn’t think of waking him. 
And little mother is so old and weak that 
she can’t unbolt the door alone. Come some 
other day.” 


80 


THE DISAPPOINTED BEAR 


Then Master Petz perceived that he had 
been fooled, and he walked reluctantly 
away, with drooping snout and an empty 
stomach. 

“ I’m glad he didn’t get Janko and 
Mirko,” said the little boy. 


81 


CHAPTER IX 


CAT AND DOG 

T HE little boy was playing in the court 
with the moujik’s dog that helped to 
guard the sheep. It was a clear, cold day, 
but the little boy was not cold, for he had 
on his warm quilted kaftan , or blouse, his 
cap, which he called his chapka, on his head, 
and on his feet were sandals made of the 
tough bark of the linden-tree. He was not 
going to risk frozen toes another time! 

The sheep-dog was old and rather cross, 
but he was always kind to the little boy. 
Rut when the house-cat followed the cow¬ 
herd woman out of the house, where she had 
gone to carry some milk, the dog bristled up 
and growled. The cat spat at him, and this 
was too much. He sprang at her, but kitty 
82 


CAT AND DOG 


was too quick for him. She flew across the 
court and scrambled nimbly up to the shed 
roof by one of the supporting poles. The 
dog was too old and heavy to follow her, 
and he sat on his haunches in the court be¬ 
low, bristling and snarling, the cat spitting 
back at him and evidently enjoying the fun. 
The cow-herd woman and a moujik who was 
at work in the court were laughing heartily; 
the little boy’s brother, who was cutting 
wood in the shed, came out to see what it 
was all about. The little boy was highly 
excited, and he ran to call his grandmother 
to come and see. 

But by the time the grandmother had 
risen slowly from her chair—for her rheu¬ 
matism was bad that day—and had gone to 
the door, leaning on her stick, the fun was 
all over. The cat had gone around to an¬ 
other side of the shed, and lay basking in 
the sun, out of the dog’s sight; the moujik , 
the cow-herd woman, and the little boy’s 
83 


WHY THE DOG CANNOT ENDURE THE CAT 


brother had gone back to their work. Only 
the dog remained, looking up at the de¬ 
serted roof and growling at nothing. 

The little boy went with his grandmother 
into the house. 

“ Grandmamma,” he asked, “ why does 
the dog always quarrel with the cat? ” 

“ My great-grandmother told me why,” 
replied the grandmother. “ I will tell you 
that story now, if you like.” 

“ Oh, do, do! ” cried the little boy. 

“ It is the story,” said the grandmother, 
“ of 

“ WHY THE DOG CANNOT ENDURE THE CAT, 
NOR THE CAT THE MOUSE ” 

In olden times, as my great-grandmother 
told me, dogs enjoyed great freedom, and 
among other privileges they had a right to 
all the meat that fell from the table. To 
guard this right for all time they drew up 
a manifesto, and copied it upon parchment. 

84 


WHY THE DOG CANNOT ENDURE THE CAT 

In this manifesto this right was expressly 
made known. For a long time the King of 
the Dogs had charge of this document, but 
finally he confided it to the care of his pri¬ 
vate secretary, the Tomcat. And the Tom¬ 
cat carried the proclamation up into the 
garret and hid it behind a beam where no 
one could possibly find it. 

Now it happened that behind the beam 
dwelt a young Mouse, and on one of his 
walks he stumbled upon the roll. He tried 
to drag it from its hiding-place, but the stiff 
parchment stuck fast, and he could not pull 
it out. But it was quite within reach of his 
little teeth, and the Mouse was highly de¬ 
lighted with his lucky find, for now he had 
something to nibble upon. Day by day he 
paid a visit to the parchment and whetted 
his teeth upon it. 

Now it presently happened that one day 
a Dog picked up a piece of meat and was 
caught and his paw well rubbed with hot 
85 


WHY THE DOG CANNOT ENDURE THE CAT 


ashes. Weeping, he appeared before the 
King and told him the whole story. 

Then the King immediately summoned 
his private secretary, the Tomcat, and com¬ 
manded him to show the proclamation. The 
Tomcat hastened to bring the parchment 
without delay; but, to his misfortune, what 
did he find? Only a few fragments! 

It was at once clear to him that this was 
the deed of some little Mouse. He told the 
story to all the other Cats, who, to express 
their grief and sorrow, began to mew most 
piteously. When they had sufficiently ex¬ 
pressed their feelings they declared war 
against all Mice. 

After this the Tomcat made his report 
to the King of the Dogs, and the King 
immediately summoned the T)og-zemstvo. 
The Dogs came together from all parts— 
sheep-dogs, wolf-dogs, boar-hounds, house¬ 
dogs; and to them all the King gave com¬ 
mand that from thenceforth and forever 


86 


WHY THE DOG CANNOT ENDURE THE CAT 


they should treat the Cat as the common 
enemy. Thus all eats would be made to rue 
that Tomcat’s carelessness. 

And that is the end of the story. 

“Now I understand all about it,” said 
the little boy. 


87 


CHAPTER X 


A PLEASANT SURPRISE 

VERY delightful surprise awaited the 



little boy. A few days after the meet¬ 
ing in his house his mother told him that 
the mir had elected his father deputy to the 
zemstvo . In a few days he must go to the 
capital of the district, and he had decided 
to take the little boy and his mother with 
him. That was news indeed! The little 
boy ran to tell his grandmother. Or, rather, 
he hopped on one foot all the way, for he 
was so glad that he had to do something 
unusual. 

The grandmother was delighted with the 
news. “ You will go on the railroad,” she 
said. “ That is a great thing. There were 
no railroads when I was young, and I should 


88 


A PLEASANT SURPRISE 


not like to travel on one. A good sledge 
with three horses is far safer, I think. But 
the railroad is faster, your father tells me, 
and that is something in cold weather.” 

The little boy ran back to find out how 
soon they were to go. “ Shall we go to¬ 
day? ” he asked his mother. 

“ Oh, no, not to-day! ” she answered. 

“ To-morrow, then? ” 

“Not to-morrow, but perhaps the day 
after to-morrow.” 

“ That is a long time! ” sighed the little 
boy. 

“ You must have patience,” said the 
mother. “ There is no virtue so necessary 
in this world as patience.” 

The little boy wandered back to his 
grandmother’s room. 

“ Grandmamma,” he said, “ mother says 
I must have patience; but I don’t know how. 
We are not going to start on the journey 
for two whole days.” 


89 


THE FOX AND THE BADGER 


“ Perhaps I can help you,” said the 
grandmother. “If I were to tell you a 
story now? ” 

“ Oh, yes, that would help, little grand¬ 
ma! ” cried the little boy. “ I can be very 
patient when you tell me stories.” 

“ This one,” said the grandmother, “ is 
about 


THE FOX AND THE BADGER 

A Fox and a Badger met in the moun¬ 
tains and made an alliance, agreeing that 
whichever of them found anything good to 
eat should share it with the other, like a 
brother. 

Now the Master knew where there was a 
trap set and baited with a great piece of 
meat. He therefore led the Badger there 
and showed him the meat. 

“See, dear nephew,” said he, “ how your 
clever uncle has led you to a place where we 
can both have a grand feast. But you are 
90 


THE FOX AND THE BADGER 


more limber than I, so just slip gently i 
and pull out the meat, while I keep watci 
that the moujik who put it here does not 
suddenly catch us napping.” 

The Badger agreed without further 
words. He slipped into the trap, and was 
about to pull the meat from the hook, when 
—snap!—his forefoot was fast in the 
trap. The Badger broke out into a howl 
of distress, “ Help, uncle, help! I am 
lost!” 

Reinecke ran quickly to the trap, but in¬ 
stead of freeing the Badger he at once be¬ 
gan to gnaw the meat. 

“ Just have a little patience,” he said, 
“ till I have eaten this morsel before some 
one comes from the village. Then I will 
pull your leg out of the trap.” 

Now Graybeard saw plainly that the 
Master had played a trick upon him, and 
he quickly seized him by the nape of the 
neck. At this moment the moujik came 
91 


THE FOX AND THE BADGER 


mnning up, crying from afar, “ Hold on, 
my falcon-badger! By my faith, I will not 
rumple a hair of your head! ” 

So the moujik killed the Fox and stripped 
off his skin, saying to the Badger, “ You 
may go free; his skin is worth five kopeks , 
but yours only two. Go, in God’s name! ” 

“ It wasn’t fair of Reinecke,” observed 
the little boy. 

“No, it wasn’t fair, and so he got pun¬ 
ished,” said the grandmother. 

The little boy was silent for a few min¬ 
utes. Then he said: 

“ Little grandma, I am not patient yet.” 

“Oho!” said the grandmother, “if my 
stories don’t help you to be patient, there is 
no use in my telling them.” 

“ But they do help, grandmamma,” said 
the little boy. “ I am a little patient now, 
just a very little. If you told me another 
story I should be more patient still.” 

92 


THE STAG AND THE HEDGEHOG 


The grandmother laughed. Then she 
told the story of 

THE STAG AND THE HEDGEHOG 

A Stag and a Hedgehog were once 
standing upon a steep hill, and the Hedge¬ 
hog invited the Stag to roll down with him 
into the ditch. 

“ Do you roll down first,” replied the 
Stag. 

Without further words the Hedgehog 
rolled himself into a round ball and rolled 
down the slope. The Stag followed and 
broke his neck. 

Then thought the Hedgehog, “ What 
shall I do with you now? ” At last the 
thought occurred to him to call a butcher, 
and he immediately set out to seek one. On 
the way he met a Fox. 

“ Whither away?” asked Reinecke; and 
the Hedgehog answered, “ To seek a 
butcher.” 


93 


THE STAG AND THE HEDGEHOG 

“ Gossip,” said the Fox, “ I am a 
butcher.” 

“ Then show me your teeth, Master,” said 
the Hedgehog. 

Reinecke showed his teeth, but the Hedge¬ 
hog told him they were not sharp enough, 
and went on his way. 

After a while he met a Wolf, who asked 
him, “Whither away, Gossip?” 

“ To seek a butcher,” said the Hedge¬ 
hog. 

“ I am a butcher, sure enough,” said the 
Wolf. 

“ Then show me your tools.” 

Isegrim showed his teeth, and the Hedge¬ 
hog, well pleased, said to him, “ Follow me, 
then.” 

The Wolf followed him, and they came 
to the dead Stag. In a trice the Wolf had 
torn him in pieces, and inviting all his kin¬ 
dred to the feast, he gave each of them a 
fine morsel, and kept a whole leg for him- 
94 


THE STAG AND THE HEDGEHOG 


self, without the least consideration for the 
Hedgehog. 

“ Well, and what am I to get? ” asked 
the Hedgehog, quite vexed; and the Wolf 
replied, “ The entrails.” 

This seemed to the Hedgehog very un¬ 
fair, and he began to reason with Isegrim. 
But the Wolf only answered, “If you 
aren’t satisfied, go to the judge and make 
a complaint.” 

So the Hedgehog went to seek a judge, 
and the Wolf followed after. Now the 
Hedgehog knew where there was a trap, 
and he led Isegrim in that direction. The 
Hedgehog tapped lightly upon the knocker, 
but this quite disgusted Isegrim. 

“Wait, let me knock!” said he, and he 
thumped with all the strength of his paw. 
So he was caught, and the Hedgehog ran 
away laughing. 

The story is done. 


95 


THE STAG AND THE HEDGEHOG 


“It is done too quick, little grandmoth¬ 
er/’ observed the little boy after a mo¬ 
ment’s thought. “ I am not patient yet.” 

“ Then my medicine is not the right 
kind,” said the grandmother. “ Run away 
home and hold some yarn for your sister. 
I heard her say that she was going to knit 
some warm mittens for you to wear on the 
journey. Holding yarn is an excellent 
school for patience.” 


96 


CHAPTER XI 


THE PATIENT LITTLE BOY 

T HE door of the grandmother’s room 
opened very slowly, and the little boy 
peeped in. 

“ Grandmother, I did hold the yarn, and 
I am very patient now. Do you think you 
could tell me another story? ” 

“ It is such a good thing to be patient,” 
said the grandmother, “ and so hard to learn, 
that I am sure you deserve a reward. So 
come in and shut the door tight, and I will 
tell you about 

“ THE COCK AND THE HEN ” 

Once upon a time there was a man who 
had lived many years in peace and quietness 
with his wife. At last, however, they fell 
97 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


into a violent quarrel and decided to sepa¬ 
rate at bed and board and to divide their 
goods between them. 

Short hair is soon brushed , and the divis¬ 
ion was soon made, for their whole posses¬ 
sions consisted of a Cock and a Hen. And 
the wife said, “ I’ll take the Hen for my 
share, and you may have the Cock.” 

By and by the husband fell ill, and he 
went to beg his wife to give him just one 
little egg, for he was very hungry. But she 
answered him scornfully: 

“ Hum, hum, where is your Cock? Let 
him lay you a little egg; if he won’t do it, 
kill him! ” 

At this the man returned home quite 
crestfallen, and said to his Cock, “ Come, 
my fine fellow, this can’t go on any longer! 
You do nothing but eat and drink, and 
never bring me so much as a bright penny. 
Go out into the world and seek your fort¬ 
une! ” 


98 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


In deep dejection the Cock sighed, “ Ah, 
where shall I find anything? ” 

However, he sallied forth sturdily, and in 
the forest he met Isegrim. The Wolf said 
to him, “ Whither away, my fine fellow? ” 

“ Oh, I’m going out into the world to 
seek my fortune! ” 

“ May I go with you? ” 

“ Not another word; be my comrade.” 
So the two travelled up and down the 
world until Isegrim was too tired to go an¬ 
other step, and the Cock said to him: 

“ Well, dear uncle, can’t you walk far¬ 
ther than this? ” 

“Alas, no!” said the Wolf. 

“ Then slip yourself into me.” 

In a trice Isegrim was in the body of the 
Cock, who went on, quite at his ease. 

Shortly after he met Reinecke, and said 
to him, “ Whither away, Master? ” 

“ Whither away? Into the world to seek 
my fortune.” 

99 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


“ Then join my company,” said the Cock. 

So they went up and down the world 
until Reinecke was quite exhausted and 
could go no farther. 

“What, Master!” said the Cock, “do 
you give out so soon? Well, just slip your¬ 
self into me and I’ll carry you.” 

Master Reinecke slipped quickly into the 
Cock, who bravely went on his way. 

After a time he came to a little Brook. 
“ Little Brook, whither away? ” 

“ Oh, through the world! ” 

“ Come with me, then, and be my com¬ 
rade.” 

So they went forward until the little 
Brook, for very weariness, could go no 
farther. 

“ Does your strength give out so soon, 
my little Brook? ” asked the Cock. 

“ Alas, yes! ” replied the little Brook. 

“ Then slip into me; I’ll carry you,” and 
in a moment the Brook had slipped into the 
Cock. 


100 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


In the course of time the Cock met a 
swarm of Bees. “ Whither away? ” he 
asked. 

“ Oh, into the wide world to seek a 
shelter! ” 

“ Then come along; be my comrades.” 

They had not gone far before the swarm 
of Bees grew tired and could go no farther, 
and the Cock invited them to crawl into his 
body. 

So the Cock, carrying the swarm of Bees, 
the Brook, the Fox, and the Wolf in his 
body, arrived at a great city. In this city 
reigned a King and his wife, the Queen. 
The Cock flew straight to the roof of the 
royal palace and spent the night there. At 
early dawn he began to crow lustily: 

Cock-a-doodle-doo! Cock-a-doodle-doo! 

One kick for the King, for the Queen two! 

This enraged the King terribly, and he 
commanded his chamberlain to catch this 


101 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


impudent crower and chain him in the royal 
stables, that he might be trampled to death 
by the horses’ hoofs. The chamberlain 
caught the Cock, threw him into the stable, 
and shut the door well. 

Then the Cock told the Wolf to slip out, 
and during the night Isegrim strangled all 
the horses and ate up a whole colt. Then 
he broke a hole through the wall, by which 
he and the Cock escaped. The Cock perched 
himself again upon the roof and began his 
song of yesterday: 

Cock-a-doodle-doo! Cock-a-doodle-doo: 

One kick for the King, for the Queen two! 

In a moment the King sprang out of 
bed, called his chamberlain, and ordered him 
to send and see what had happened in the 
stable, that the Cock was out of doors and 
crowing. The chamberlain hastened to the 
stable, saw the strangled horses, and brought 
the news to the King. 

102 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


At this the King flew into a still greater 
rage, and gave command to catch the Cock 
and throw him among the geese. The cham¬ 
berlain seized the Cock and locked him in 
the goose-pen, where there were several hun¬ 
dred geese. Then the Cock said to the Fox, 
“ Come forth, Master, and finish up with all 
these geese! ” 

Reinecke was soon at work, and by day¬ 
break every goose was strangled. Then the 
Fox groped a hole through the pen, and he 
and the Cock slipped comfortably out. The 
Cock flew again to the roof and sang as on 
the former day: 

Cock-a-doodle-doo! Cock-a-doodle-doo! 

One kick for the King, for the Queen two! 

The King was more enraged than ever, 
and sent to see what had happened to the 
geese. The servant found them all dead, 
and brought the news to the King. Then 
the King commanded that the great bake- 
103 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


oven should be heated and the Cock thrown 
into it. The servant caught the Cock and 
threw him into the very middle of the hot 
oven. Then the Cock sang: 

Little Brook, flow quickly out; 

Put the oven fire out! 

And the little Brook flowed out into the 
oven and extinguished the whole fire. 

The next morning the people came to see 
if the Cock was dead, when, lo! he was al¬ 
ready perched upon the roof, singing: 

Cock-a-doodle-doo! Cock-a-doodle-doo! 

One kick for the King, for the Queen two! 

Now the King was beside himself with 
rage. He rushed out to catch the Cock him¬ 
self, and not knowing, in his excitement, 
what to do with him, he thrust him un¬ 
der his night-clothes. Then the Cock told 
the swarm of Bees to come out and sting 
the King. “Buzz, buzz!” out they came, 
104 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


and stung the King till he was all one 
wound. 

At this the King commanded his servants 
to lock up the Cock in his treasure-chamber, 
that he might miserably starve to death. 
The servants seized the Cock and carried 
him to the treasure-chamber, but they were 
so frightened that they ran away as fast as 
their heels could carry them, forgetting to 
fasten the door. There were great heaps of 
shining, brand-new ducats in the treasure- 
chamber, and the Cock made the best of the 
opportunity by swallowing a number of 
them and hiding one under each of his 
feathers. Then he flew away to his old 
master’s house. He perched upon a tree in 
the yard and began to crow: 

O, little father, little father! 

Spread some plates abroad for me, 

I’ll give ducats bright to thee! 

The old man, overjoyed, spread out three 
105 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


plates under the tree. Then the Cock shook 
himself, and a shower of golden ducats fell 
and lay upon the plates in three great heaps. 
The old man was perfectly happy to have 
so much money, and from this time forward 
he let the Cock want for nothing. 

His former wife soon heard that he had 
become enormously rich, and she came to 
see him. 

“ Ah, come,” said she to him, “ give me a 
few ducats! ” 

“ Not if I know it! Why would not you 
give me one little egg, eh? Go back and 
tell your old Hen to bring you ducats.” 

The old woman ran back to her home and 
commanded her Hen, “ Go out into the 
world and seek your fortune, and bring me 
home some ducats.” 

The Hen went sadly forth, betook her¬ 
self to the refuse heap and began to scratch 
in the litter. After long scratching she 
found a copper heller and a needle. She 
106 



A shower of golden ducats fell, and lay upon the plates in 

three great heaps 






























THE COCK AND THE HEN 


picked them up, and also stuck a little stone 
under each of her feathers. Then she 
flew back to the court-yard and began to 
cackle: 


O, little mother, little mother! 

Spread some plates abroad for me. 

I’ll give ducats bright to thee! 

Filled with joy, the old woman hastened 
to spread out four plates under the tree. 
Then the Hen shook herself, and let fall on 
one plate the worn heller , but only little 
stones on all the others. 

“ Is that all? ” exclaimed the old woman 
angrily. 

“ No, here is something more,” clucked 
the Hen, and she slung the needle into the 
old woman’s eye. 

Upon this the old woman beat the Hen 
soundly, and went back to her husband’s 
house, begged his pardon and made it all 
up with him. Whenever he wanted an egg 
107 


THE COCK AND THE HEN 


she gave him one, and he always gave her 
a ducat in exchange. 

Little boy, if you are good you shall get 
an egg for nothing! 

“ I am good, grandmother,” said the lit¬ 
tle boy. “ Will you give me an egg? ” 

The grandmother laughed. “ That is 
only the way the story ends,” she said. 
“ But it is dinner-time, and if your mother 
will let you take dinner with me I will give 
you an egg. Run away and ask her.” 


108 


CHAPTER XII 


THE SHEEP-PLAY 

fTIHE dinner was over, the plates washed 
** and put away, and grandmother was 
busy with her spinning. The little boy was 
amusing himself with some bits of wool that 
had fallen to the floor, for everything is a 
plaything to a Russian child. The bits of 
wool were sheep, and a wooden stool was a 
sheepfold, and a bit of fuel that had fallen 
when grandmother covered up the fire was 
the sheep-dog. It was a very nice play. 

The room was very quiet, for, though the 
little boy talked all the time to his sheep and 
his dog, he had been taught to talk softly 
in his plays, as all children must do when a 
whole family lives in one room. He talked 
very softly indeed when he saw that grand- 
109 


THE SHEEP-PLAY 


mother had leaned her head against the 
straight back of her rush-bottomed chair 
and was taking a little nap. Presently the 
distaff fell from her lap to the floor and 
awakened her. 

“ Why, I must have been asleep! ” she 
said, and went on with her spinning. 

At last the sheep, which had been wander¬ 
ing away upon the hills that rose between 
the hollows in the clay floor, had all been 
discovered by the sheep-dog and herded, one 
by one, in the fold. The little boy was tired 
of playing, and he sat on the stool to listen 
to his grandmother’s singing. Grandmother 
was always singing when she was not tell¬ 
ing stories to the little boy. 

“ Why can’t you tell stories while you 
spin, as well as when you knit? ” asked the 
little boy. 

“ Oh, that isn’t the way! ” said the grand¬ 
mother. “ When it is dark and I take my 
knitting I can tell a story, but not now. 

110 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


You’d better go home till it begins to grow 
dark; then come, and we’ll see what story 
little grandmother can tell.” 

The winter day was very short, and it was 
not long before the little boy came back. 
Grandmother was still spinning, but she laid 
aside her distaff and spindle, took her knit¬ 
ting down from the shelf, and began the 
story of 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 

Once upon a time there lived in a cer¬ 
tain village a Beg whose whole property 
consisted of a horse, a greyhound, and 
a musket. He had no other occupation 
than hunting, and by this he gained his 
living. 

One fine day he mounted his horse, threw 
his musket over his shoulder, called to his 
greyhound, and set off to hunt upon the 
high mountains. After riding a long dis¬ 
tance he reached an elevated plain, where he 
111 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


tied his horse to a tree and went forward 
into the thick woods, with his gun upon his 
shoulder and his dog by his side. While he 
was hunting on the mountain a Fox drew 
near to the horse and lay down in the grass 
beside him. 

The Beg hunted about in the woods for 
a long time, but he only made out to kill a 
single deer. When he went back to his 
horse and saw the Fox lying there beside it 
he was astonished, and raised his musket to 
make an end of the Master. But when the 
Fox saw what the Beg was about to do he 
sprang up quickly and implored him, for 
the love of Heaven, to spare his life, promis¬ 
ing to be a faithful guard and protector to 
his horse. 

The Beg took pity on the Fox and gave 
him his life. Then mounting his horse, he 
laid the deer before him, set the Fox behind 
him, and went home. On arriving at home 
he put the deer upon the spit to roast for 
112 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


supper, and threw the offal to the Fox, that 
he might have a good meal too. 

So the night passed. In the first dawn 
of morning the Beg again set out, taking 
the Fox along. He went again to the same 
high plain, tied his horse to the same tree, 
and went forward to hunt, leaving the Fox 
to guard the horse. After his departure the 
Fox remained alone for a time. But he 
soon had company, for a Bear came along, 
intending to devour the horse. But the Fox 
stopped him and begged him to spare the 
horse, advising him to stay till the Beg re¬ 
turned, for he was a good master and would 
feed them both at his house. The Bear joy¬ 
fully accepted this proposal, and lay down 
beside the Fox to await the worthy Beg’s 
return. 

When the Beg came back from hunting 
he was not a little surprised to see the Bear 
lying peacefully with the Fox beside the 
horse, and he quickly raised his musket to 
113 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


him. But the Fox sprang forward and be¬ 
gan to beseech the Beg to spare the Bear 
and take him home with him. The Bear, 
he said, would keep him company in guard¬ 
ing the horse, and would rush to the Beg’s 
aid in every need and danger. At these 
entreaties the Beg laid down his gun, threw 
across his horse the two deer which he had 
killed, and returned home in high good- 
humor, accompanied by the Fox and the 
Bear. 

The following day the Beg went hunting 
again and left his horse on the same high 
plain. This day a Wolf joined the com¬ 
pany and was taken home with the others. 
On the fourth day a Mouse and a Mole 
presented themselves and were accepted in 
the family, and at last came the bird Kum- 
rikusha , 1 which was so large that it could 
easily have carried away the horse and his 

1 Kumrikusha is from a Slavonic root signifying “ the bird 
of the desert.” 


114 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


rider through the air. All these animals 
were fed by the Beg at his own house. 

One day the Fox said to the Bear, “ Up, 
Master Petz! Bring me here a log! I will 
sit upon it and give orders, and you must 
all execute them.” 

Upon this the Bear betook himself to the 
forest and dragged home the trunk of a 
mighty tree. Then Reinecke climbed upon 
it and uttered the following discourse: 

“ All right! Well, then! See here, now, 
worthy companions and friends! We must 
marry our Beg.” 

“Good!” replied the others; “but how 
shall we begin? For we don’t know where 
to find a maiden for him.” 

“ The Emperor has a daughter,” replied 
Reinecke; “let us marry our Beg to her. 
Kumrikusha, do you begin. Set off at 
once for the imperial castle, lie in wait for 
the young lady when she takes her walk, 
seize her and bring her here.” 

115 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


Kumrikusha, nothing loath, set out at 
once, alighted near the imperial castle, and 
watched for the Emperor’s little daughter. 
Just at nightfall she came out of the castle 
to walk, accompanied by her waiting-wom¬ 
an. In a trice Kumrikusha was upon the 
spot, seized the Princess, set her upon his 
back, and flew homeward. 

When the Emperor heard of the abduc¬ 
tion of his daughter he was beside himself 
with grief, and offered to reward with un¬ 
told wealth the person who should bring her 
home again. But all in vain, for no one 
dared undertake the adventure, until at last, 
one day, a gypsy-wife presented herself be¬ 
fore the Emperor and said to him: 

“ Lord Emperor, what shall I get if I 
bring you back your daughter? ” 

The Emperor could hardly believe his own 
ears, and he cried out in delight, “ Ask what 
you will, it shall be granted; only bring her 
back safe!” 


116 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


The gypsy-wife went home, took some 
beans in her hand, and began to practise en¬ 
chantment with them, according to ancient 
custom. She soon divined from the beans 
that the Princess was distant ten days’ 
journey, and she at once prepared to 
follow her. She took a piece of carpet 
and her riding-whip, seated herself upon 
the carpet, cracked the whip, and up 
rose the carpet into the air. It carried 
her straight to the place where the Beg 
was living with his wife, the Emperor’s 
daughter. 

Arrived within a short distance of the 
Beg’s stronghold, the gypsy-wife let her¬ 
self down to the ground, left her carpet and 
riding-whip lying there, and found a hid¬ 
ing-place where she could see the Princess 
when she came out before the door for her 
evening walk. She had not long to wait. 
The Princess soon came out for a little walk, 
and in a trice the gypsy-wife was at her 
117 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


side, entering into conversation with her. 
As they talked she gradually led her farther 
and farther away from the Beg’s castle, 
and at last turned off into a by-path, where 
the carpet lay. 

No sooner did the Princess see the carpet 
spread upon the grass than she exclaimed, 
“ Why, here is a carpet! Let us sit down 
upon it.” 

Nothing could have pleased the gypsy 
better. They sat down together. The gypsy 
took up her riding-whip, struck the carpet, 
and away they both went through the air, 
straight to the imperial castle. 

The Emperor’s joy was boundless when 
he saw his daughter, and he richly rewarded 
the gypsy. But he shut the Princess up in 
a room and strictly forbade her to leave it, 
appointing two maids to watch and wait 
upon her. 

When Reinecke heard what had hap¬ 
pened to his Beg’s wife, he summoned his 

118 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


companions to a council and addressed them 
in the following words: 

“ Friends and comrades! We have in¬ 
deed married our Beg to the Emperor’s 
daughter, but, as you see, she has been for¬ 
cibly taken away from us, and here is our 
Beg a lonely bachelor again. Nothing re¬ 
mains for us to do but to bring the Princess 
back to our Beg. But this is an undertaking 
beset with difficulties. The Emperor keeps 
his daughter under strict watch, and never 
permits her to leave her chamber. You see, 
therefore, that only stratagem can avail us 
here.” 

“What, then, shall we do?” asked Petz. 

“ There is nothing better to do than for 
me to transform myself into a beautiful 
striped kitten and play about under the 
Princess’s window. When she sees me she 
will send her maids down to catch me. But 
I shall not allow myself to be caught until 
the Princess herself comes down. At the 
119 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


very moment she appears, do you, Kum- 
rikusha, arrive upon the scene, seize her, and 
carry her to our Beg. Meanwhile I shall 
look sharp to outrun the pursuers and get 
off with a whole skin.” 

Thus spoke the Master, and all the others 
agreed that the plan was good. 

The bird Kumrikusha immediately took 
the Fox under his wing, flew with him into 
the kingdom where the Emperor’s daughter 
languished, and set him down near the im¬ 
perial castle. The Master no sooner felt 
solid ground under his feet than he trans¬ 
formed himself into a beautiful striped 
kitten, crept under the balcony where the 
Princess was sitting, and began to spring 
about in the most graceful and fantastic 
manner. Thus he succeeded in attracting 
her attention, and, as he had anticipated, the 
Princess at once sent her maids down to 
bring the kitten to her. But Reinecke, 
though in a cat’s form, was still a fox at 
120 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


heart, and was not to be caught at any 
price. 

When the Emperor’s daughter saw this 
she herself went down to catch Pussy. But 
hardly had she stepped out of the door when 
the bird Kumrikusha swooped down, seized 
her, and bore her home to the Beg, while 
Reinecke ran off in another direction and 
thus saved his skin. 

As soon as the Emperor heard of this mis¬ 
hap he ordered out his hounds to hunt the 
cat that had decoyed away his daughter. 
But the cat, when he saw himself chased, 
took refuge in the cleft of a rock into which 
the hounds could not follow him. So they 
returned home from a bootless chase. 

Then the cat crept out, transformed him¬ 
self back into a fox, and followed Kum¬ 
rikusha, who by this time had brought the 
Princess home to the Beg. 

The Emperor, convinced that he should 
not recover his daughter by peaceful means, 
121 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


levied an immense army and declared war 
against the beasts. When Reinecke heard 
of this he summoned the other animals that 
lived with the Beg, and which, as I have 
told you, were a Bear, a Wolf, a Mouse, a 
Mole, and the bird Kumrikusha, and spoke 
to them thus: 

“Listen! The Emperor, with his whole 
army, is marching against us to exterminate 
us. Very well; let us also summon our 
forces, that we may make a brave stand 
against him. Master Petz, how many bears 
can you muster? ” 

“ More than three hundred.” 

“ And you, Isegrim? ” 

“ I can bring five hundred wolves.” 

“ And you, Mouse—speak up; how great 
is your command? ” 

“ I can bring three thousand mice.” 

“ And how many moles can you bring, 
Mole? ” 

“ Eight thousand.” 


122 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


“ And you, Kumrikusha, will you join 
us?” 

“Yes, with two or three hundred birds 
like myself.” 

“ Good! Now go and levy your forces 
as has been agreed. When they are assem¬ 
bled, come here, that I may tell you what 
to do next.” 

As soon as Reinecke had given these or¬ 
ders the beasts all betook themselves to the 
forest in order to summon their troops. 
Soon heaven and earth resounded with the 
din of approaching multitudes. Here came 
the army of the Bears, there came the 
Wolves, and close behind were the Mice 
and the Moles. Woods and fields were 
filled with them, and when they were all 
drawn up in martial array Reinecke held a 
review and gave the following orders: 

“ You, Bears and Wolves, must lead the 
van, and when the Emperor has encamped 
for the night do you fall upon the camp 
123 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


and kill all the horses. On the second night, 
you, Mice, must gnaw all the saddles, for 
they will have procured fresh horses in the 
meantime. On the third night, you, Moles, 
must dig around the camp a subterranean 
passage fifteen ells broad and twenty deep. 
And as soon as the army is stirring in the 
morning, you, Kumrikushas, must rain down 
great pieces of rock upon them.” 

The review ended, the several detach¬ 
ments of the army of the beasts set forth. 
The first night, when the imperial host had 
encamped, the Bears and the Wolves fell 
upon the imperial horses and tore them all 
to pieces. Early in the morning the sol¬ 
diers announced to the Emperor that wild 
beasts had killed all the horses during the 
night. The Emperor made diligent search 
into the cause of the sudden calamity, and 
meanwhile he commanded that fresh horses 
should be procured without delay. This 
was done and the army moved on. 

124 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


During the second night’s encampment 
the Mice came and gnawed all the trappings 
of the horses. In the morning when the 
soldiers awoke and saw that all the saddles 
were nibbled they told the Emperor, who at 
once commanded that new ones should be 
made. This done, again the army marched 
on. 

The third night the Fox sent the Moles 
to surround the camp with a subterranean 
passage fifteen ells broad and twenty deep. 
That the work might be the sooner accom¬ 
plished, he directed the Bears to carry away 
the loosened earth. The Moles began the 
work about midnight, leaving only one hole 
open at one side where the earth was to be 
carried out. While the Moles were digging 
under the ground and throwing up the 
clods, the Bears were busily carrying the 
earth to some distance from the camp. 

When the Emperor’s troops awoke in the 
morning they mounted their horses to ride 
125 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


away; but hardly had they gone a few steps 
when they began to fall through the treach¬ 
erous earth. At the same time the Kum- 
rikushas let fall a rain of rocks and stones 
upon them. 

When the Emperor saw his great army 
thus miserably perishing he cried aloud, 
“ Let us beat a retreat! It is the judgment 
of God upon us for undertaking to make 
war upon the beasts. Let them keep my 
kidnapped daughter, in Heaven’s name!” 

Immediately the army wheeled about to 
retreat, but even on that side the earth gave 
way beneath their feet. 

“ God is punishing us already,” cried the 
Emperor in despair, “ by causing the earth 
to swallow us up! Oh, why, then, does He 
slay us with stones and rocks from the sky? ” 

The confusion was universal; every one 
was pushing and crowding his neighbor; 
and so the Emperor’s whole army melted 
away. 


126 


THE BEG AND THE FOX 


After a time the Fox removed his resi¬ 
dence to Stamboul and began to rule there, 
and the Beg gave up hunting and went also 
to Stamboul to be near his Fox. There, 
with his wife, whom no one again dared to 
kidnap, he lived in joy and peace until his 
blessed end. 

The little boy had left his stool and was 
standing near his grandmother, his eyes 
shining in the darkness. When she stopped 
speaking he drew a long breath. 

“ That was a good Fox, grandmother,” 
he said. “ I should like to know that Fox.” 


127 


CHAPTER XIII 


GETTING READY 

I T was very interesting in the little boy’s 
house the next day, for the mother was 
getting ready for the journey and the sis¬ 
ters were helping. There was food to be 
cooked and there were clothes to be washed, 
and it all made a very pleasant bustle. The 
little boy was in the thick of it all. He 
thought he was helping, though perhaps the 
others thought differently. At any rate, he 
was in a state of most delightful excitement. 

When it grew dark the work was all done, 
and the little boy went to the grandmother’s 
room. 

“We are all ready, grandmother,” he said, 
“ and I have been patient all the time! ” 
“Well, well!” said the grandmother. 
128 


THE SEVEN STARS 


“ Surely you deserve a reward, then. Shall 
I tell you a story? ” 

“ Oh, dear little grandmother, yes! ” cried 
the little boy. “Will it be about Rei- 
necke? ” 

“ Not about Reinecke, nor any of the ani¬ 
mals you know,” said the grandmother; “ it 
will be about 

“ THE SEVEN STARS ” 

Once upon a time there was a King who 
had a wonderfully beautiful daughter. But 
there came a Dragon and stole her away 
and vanished, leaving not a trace behind. 

So the King called his High Chamberlain 
and commanded him to go forth into the 
world and seek the Princess, and on no ac¬ 
count to come back without her. 

The High Chamberlain set out and 
searched throughout the whole world, but 
nowhere could he find the slightest trace of 
the King’s daughter nor the least clew to 
129 


THE SEVEN STARS 


her whereabouts. However, an old woman 
advised him to go to such-and-such a coun¬ 
try and inquire for the Dragon-mother, for 
she alone was able to give him information 
about the stolen Princess. 

And, verily, the High Chamberlain fol¬ 
lowed this counsel. After most toilsome 
wanderings he at last arrived safely at the 
Dragon-mother’s house and begged her to 
give him such information as she had as to 
the abiding-place of the King’s daughter. 

The Dragon-mother answered, “ My dear 
friend, stay here over this night. What 
God has given us we will share with you— 
you shall not suffer hunger in my house. 
As soon as my sons, the Dragons, return 
home from afar I will ask them about the 
Princess. I have five sons, each one wiser 
and cleverer than the other. The first has 
the power of stealing anything that he takes 
a fancy to; he could steal the calf from the 
cow or the foal from the mare, and they 
130 


THE SEVEN STARS 


never observe it. The second can follow up 
the trace of any lost object, though it have 
been lost for years. The third draws a sure 
arrow upon anything that he can see. The 
fourth can build an impregnable fortress in 
an instant, and can hide anything he chooses 
within it, so that no one can possibly find it. 
And the fifth is as bold as a falcon and as 
swift as the lightning when there is any¬ 
thing to be overtaken and caught.” 

While she was speaking, her sons, the 
Dragons, came home, and the mother in¬ 
quired of them if they knew anything of 
the whereabouts of the King’s lost daughter. 

“ To be sure,” they answered. “ She is 
with a more powerful Dragon than we. He 
stole her away from her father, the King, 
and now keeps her in one of his castles.” 

“ I adjure you,” interrupted the High 
Chamberlain, “ help me to find her. I may 
on no account appear before the King and 
live unless I bring his daughter with me. 

131 


THE SEVEN STARS 


My master will not show himself ungrateful 
to you.” 

The Dragons declared themselves quite 
willing to help him. The second brother 
traced up the scent, and the first brother 
stole the lovely maiden and brought her 
back with him. But the more powerful 
Dragon pursued after them, took her away, 
and flew up into the air to carry her to a 
place of safety. 

Then the third brother fitted a bolt to his 
crossbow, drew it, sped the arrow, and hit 
that Dragon in the very middle of his heart. 
With a fearful outcry the Dragon fell from 
the clouds and was dashed to little bits upon 
a rock. And thus it would inevitably have 
been with the King’s daughter, whom the 
Dragon held tightly clasped, had not the 
fifth brother flown swiftly and caught up 
the maiden, so that she was kept safe and 
sound. 

But now ensued a sudden and unlooked- 
132 


THE SEVEN STARS 


for danger, for the dead Dragon’s brother 
drew near, and several other monsters with 
him; and it would soon have been all over 
with the brothers if the fourth had not 
speedily erected a strong fortress, in which 
all the brothers, the King’s daughter, and 
the High Chamberlain safely concealed 
themselves. 

For a long time those hideous Dragons 
lay in wait around the fortress; but they 
finally went away, having accomplished 
nothing. Then the five brothers, the gra¬ 
cious maiden, and the High Chamberlain 
came out and went home to the Dragon- 
mother. 

And the eldest son said, “Is it not true, 
little mother, that the maiden belongs to me, 
who rescued her from that furious Drag¬ 
on? ” The second brother said, “ But you 
would never have found her nor rescued her 
if I had not traced up the scent.” The 
third brother interrupted, “ Of what good 
133 


THE SEVEN STARS 


would it have been that you, eldest brother, 
rescued her, and you, second brother, traced 
up the scent, if I had not destroyed the 
monster at the right moment? Therefore, 
in all right and reason, the maiden belongs 
to me.” 

Here the fifth brother struck in. “ By 
right the maiden belongs to me; for if I 
had not caught her up in the very nick of 
time she would not now be in the land of 
the living.” And the fourth brother said, 
“ If you will consider the whole matter im¬ 
partially, you will see that I have the most 
righteous claim upon the maiden; for all 
your trouble would have gone for nothing 
if I had not made the castle at the right 
moment and bidden her, and you, too, to 
come within it.” 

And now the Chamberlain put in his 
word. “ All your pretensions are idle. The 
maiden is mine; for if I had not told you 
that she was stolen away, the first would not 
134 


THE SEVEN STARS 


have rescued her, nor the second traced up 
the scent, nor the third destroyed the mon¬ 
ster, nor the fifth caught up the maiden, and 
the fourth would have concealed no one in 
his castle.” 

Thus all the six strove for possession of 
the maiden, until the Dragon-mother put in 
her word. “ If this is so, then you are all 
in the right; but the maiden can surely not 
belong to you all. But you can all take her 
for your sister and love and protect her as 
long as you and she live.” 

And so they did, and in remembrance 
thereof they and the maiden were set in the 
sky, and can be seen there to this day, and 
men call them “ the Seven Stars .” 1 At 
least, so goes the story. 

“Dragons are different from Reinecke 
and Petz and Isegrim,” observed the little 
boy. 


1 The Pleiades. 

135 


THE SEVEN STARS 


“ Don’t you like them as well? ” asked the 
grandmother. 

“ I like them,” answered the little boy, 
“ but I don’t know them as well as I know 
Reinecke and Isegrim. I am not used to 
them, grandmother.” 

“You will get used to them while you are 
at your other grandmother’s, where you are 
going to-morrow,” said the grandmother. 
“ The stories of her commune are not at all 
the same as the stories of this commune.” 

“ Why not, grandmother? ” asked the 
little boy. 

“ I don’t know why not,” answered the 
grandmother, “ but it is always so. Every 
commune has its own stories. There are 
many dragons in those of your other grand¬ 
mother’s commune. Now you are going 
out into the world, you will get very wise, 
for you will know the stories of two com¬ 
munes.” 


136 


CHAPTER XIV 


mother’s-mother 

f 11HE happy day had come. The little 
boy was all ready for the journey, 
dressed in a colored shirt hanging over his 
full trousers—the white shirt must be kept 
clean for Sunday, you know—his kaftan 
well belted down and with a small fur col¬ 
lar at the neck, and on his head a high 
kolpak , or fur hat, just like his father’s. 
His legs were covered by onontchi , well 
wrapped around and cross-gartered with col¬ 
ored strings, and on his feet he had fur- 
lined shoes, for third-class cars are very cold. 
The little boy’s mother had on all her warm 
clothes, with a long fur overcoat, just like 
that the father wore, over all her other 
wraps; and the father, besides his great fur 
137 


MOTHER’S-MOTHER 


overcoat, had on his fur kolpak and high 
fur-lined boots, into the wide tops of which 
his full trousers were tucked. He had a 
great basket in his hand, containing food 
for the journey and a pair of fowls and 
some other things for the mother’s-mother 
whom they were going to visit. In his in¬ 
side pocket the father had the papers of the 
mir which he must carry to the zemstvo . 
So they were all ready. 

All the men and children of the village 
accompanied them to the station, which was 
in the midst of a wide plain a quarter of a 
league beyond the last house. There was a 
good while to wait; the train was not due for 
half an hour, but that did not matter. The 
grown folk had a deal of talking to do—all 
the privileges that they hoped the starosta 
would secure from the zemstvo for the com¬ 
mune. As for the children! Well, this was 
the chance of their lives, for their station had 
a playground, with swings, wooden horses, 
138 


MOTHER’S-MOTHER 


and giant’s strides, and it was not often 
they had such privileges, especially the uni¬ 
formed school-children. For when once a 
Russian child puts on the school uniform, 
play is pretty nearly over for him for the 
rest of his life. So they made the most of 
their opportunity. It was not a cold day 
for January, and if it had been they would 
not have minded. 

When the train came lumbering in, as it 
did after a while, half a dozen more children 
jumped down from the second and third 
class cars and ran to the playground. The 
other children made way for them, for sta¬ 
tion playgrounds are for travelling children, 
and they had the first right. Yet there was 
room for them all. But the little boy was im¬ 
patient to be on his travels, so he ran to his 
mother, and was very glad when the men of 
the commune had said their last words to 
their representative, and the starosta led his 
wife and little boy to a good place in a corn- 
139 


MOTHER’S-MOTHER 


partment where there was room for the 
samovar . Presently the first warning was 
given. The children came running from the 
playground; there was a chorus of good- 
bys. The second warning sounded, and the 
train jolted away. The little boy was a 
travelling child at last! 

At every stop where there was a play¬ 
ground—there was not one at every station 
—he would run out and have a swing, his 
mother going with him, for he was a little 
boy to be among strangers. After a while 
he was hungry, and then his mother un¬ 
packed her basket and set the samovar 
a-going, and gave a lump of bread and a 
big piece of sausage to each, with unlimited 
cups of scalding tea that made them nice 
and warm. After that the little boy leaned 
his head against his mother, and then—most 
wonderful!—they were already at the capi¬ 
tal, and the stars were shining. Where had 
the afternoon gone? 


140 


MOTHER’S-MOTHER 


He had not time to ask, for his father 
had swung him upon his shoulder and was 
carrying him through the crowd, and there, 
outside the wicket, was a little old woman, 
with such a nice face, who fell upon his 
mother’s neck and kissed her again and 
again. 

“ That is your other grandmother,” said 
his father. “ Your mother has not seen her 
since she was married, and that is many 
years ago.” 

And then the other grandmother caught 
the little boy from his father’s arms and 
kissed him and cried over him, till the little 
boy did not know whether he ought to cry 
or not. 

He became very well acquainted with the 
other grandmother the next day. She did 
not seem like his own dear little grand¬ 
mother at home, but she was very nice. He 
called her mother’s-mother, because she was 
not his real grandmother, he thought; and 
141 


MOTHER’S-MOTHER 


the other grandmother laughed and said that 
would do very well. 

In the afternoon, when his father had 
gone back to the zemstvo , and his mother 
was clearing up after dinner, which she said 
her mother was not to do while she was 
there, the little boy went and stood by his 
other grandmother’s chair. 

“ Mother’s-mother,” he said, “ little 
grandmamma told me that you knew some 
nice stories.” 

“Yes,” said mother’s-mother, “ I suppose 
I do. They are not like your little grand¬ 
mamma’s stories. The stories of this com¬ 
mune are different. They are more about 
the Vilas than those of your commune are. 
Yours are mostly about Reinecke and the 
other beasts, are they not? ” 

“ I like Reinecke and the beasts,” said the 
little boy. “ But I should like the Vilas, too, 
mother’s-mother. ’ ’ 

“ Then I will tell you about them,” said 
142 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 

the other grandmother. “ Sit down on that 
stool—it was your mother’s when she was a 
little girl. That is right. Now I will tell 
you about 

“ THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG ” 

Once upon a time there was an aged 
widow who had only one son, whom she 
watched and cherished in her old age. Now 
there was a great war at that time all over 
the world; every man who could bear arms 
was forced to go into the army, and among 
others the widow’s son. There he so dis¬ 
tinguished himself for bravery on every oc¬ 
casion that he was promoted to be Captain. 

Now it happened one time that they suf¬ 
fered a defeat. Among the wounded was 
our Captain, and as he lay on the ground he 
prayed God to spare his life, at least until 
he had seen his old mother. He was in the 
greatest danger, for all around him the ene¬ 
my was killing the wounded. Suddenly an 
143 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


aged dame stood before him and asked him 
what he was praying for, promising him 
that she would grant his wish. 

Without taking time to think, he an¬ 
swered, “ Give me a horse, that I may escape 
before the enemy murder me.” 

Upon this she struck upon the earth with 
the staff that was in her hand, and softly 
murmured a few words. Suddenly a noble 
steed stood before him, all saddled and 
bridled; he had only to mount it. He looked 
around to thank the old dame, but she had 
vanished. 

The Captain sprang into the saddle, gave 
the horse the spur, and flew from the spot 
like an arrow from the bow. He rode on 
for a long time without noticing in what 
direction the horse was carrying him, when 
suddenly it stopped. 

He looked around and saw before him a 
great city with many church-towers which 
shone so brightly that they fairly dazzled his 
144 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


eyes. He rode into the city, and was over¬ 
come with astonishment, for all around him 
was nothing but stone. Men, women, ani¬ 
mals, everything he set his eyes upon was 
turned to stone, for this was an enchanted 
city. And the horse was a Vila, and had 
vanished from under him as soon as he had 
entered the precincts of the city. 

Perhaps he himself would have remained 
the whole day upon the spot, as if turned to 
stone, had he not suddenly beheld before 
him a maiden with golden hair. When she 
saw him she uttered a cry and hastened up 
into the golden castle. 

He followed close upon her footsteps, but 
before the castle-gate he met the same old 
woman who had given him the horse. He 
greeted her prettily and asked her what was 
all this about—the golden-haired maiden and 
the enchanted city. Hereupon the old dame 
told him the following story: 

“ Many, many years ago this city was the 
145 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


greatest and the most beautiful in the whole 
world. An Emperor lived here, who was so 
benevolent and such a lover of justice that 
whenever he heard that any one had done 
his neighbor a kindness he rewarded him so 
richly and with such distinction that he could 
live to his dying day in peace and happiness. 
On the other hand, he was unmercifully 
severe to evil-doers and caused every one 
who was guilty of any sort of crime to be 
put to death at once. 

“ For this reason some wicked men killed 
him and his only son. But as they were 
murdering the son they heard an awful 
voice, which said: 

“‘Miserable wretches! you have killed 
him who was your benefactor and father. 
Be accursed, therefore, for a thousand years, 
until a youth shall come and loose you from 
this ban ! 9 

“ But the Emperor’s daughter, whom the 
Lord God had given to me, remained alive, 
146 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


for God said, 4 She shall be the reward of 
him who frees you.’ Meantime, however, 
she was turned to stone until the moment 
when you entered the city. Then she awoke, 
cried, 4 The Liberator is come! ’ and brought 
the news to me. You yourself have seen 
her.” 

So spoke the old dame, and, full of joy, 
the young man asked her what he was to 
do in order to loose the city from the spell. 
She answered: 

44 1 can give you no counsel, but you will 
soon find that out above. And now, as you 
have no more need of me, farewell, in God’s 
name! But first I will tell you who I am. 
I am a Vila. If ever you should fall into any 
trouble, you have only to call, 4 Vila, stand 
by me!’ and you shall be helped.” She 
spoke, and was already gone. 

The young man and the maiden were now 
in doubt as to what they ought to do. They 
would gladly have wedded each other, but 
147 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


where find a priest, or even any one else? 
So they went into a church to pray to God; 
and the maid said to the youth, “ From this 
hour you are my husband and I am your 
wife till death. But go at least and set the 
bells a-ringing, that our nuptials may be 
celebrated in some way.” 

Hardly had the first note pealed forth 
from the bells when everything breathed 
and lived—the men, the beasts, everything, 
in short, which had been turned to stone. 
Then all the people broke out into the cry, 
“ God save our Liberator, now and ever¬ 
more! ” 

The first thing was to celebrate a mag¬ 
nificent wedding, when the pop united the 
pair forever in the presence of the whole 
assembled people. Every one rejoiced, eat¬ 
ing and drinking as if they never meant to 
leave off. 

The young couple lived for several years 
in joy and happiness, until at last the King 
148 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


was overcome with an ardent longing to see 
his dear mother. He confided this wish to 
his wife, whereupon she led him into the 
royal stables and presented him with four 
horses, saying: 

“ Here, I give you these four horses. 
You must know that they are Vilas, and 
they will take you to your home, for you have 
no idea how far away it is. But if any one 
there asks you where you have been and 
what you have been doing all this time, be¬ 
ware of telling them the truth, for if you 
relate your adventures the Vilas will vanish, 
and you will never be able to come back to 
me again.” 

He promised her everything that she 
asked and set out for home. When he ar¬ 
rived he found his dear mother no longer 
living. His heart was wrung with sorrow, 
for there he stood alone in the world, brother¬ 
less, sisterless, without a single relative. 

The people questioned him incessantly, 
149 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


until at last in a moment of weakness he 
yielded to their importunities and told them 
his story. But the words had hardly passed 
his lips when the horses vanished. He was 
inconsolable for their loss, for he loved his 
wife more than his own soul. 

He therefore determined to seek her out, 
even if it cost him his head. So he travelled 
on and on and on until he came to the 
Moon. There was no one at home but the 
Moon-mother, for the Moon had just gone 
out. When the Moon-mother saw the young 
man she was full of pity for him, and said: 

“ Do you not know, unhappy one, that 
my son will tear you in pieces as soon as 
he gets home? But come, I will hide you! ” 
And she hid him in a chest. 

When at last the Moon came home, tired 
and cross, he called out in a thundering 
voice, “ Woman, there is a Christian soul 
staying here! Out with him! ” 

His mother besought her son to spare the 
150 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


young man’s life, and finally she succeeded 
in mollifying him. 

“ Well, then, I won’t do him any harm,” 
said the Moon; “ only let him show himself.” 

Upon this the old mother opened the chest 
and brought the young man before her son. 
The youth drew near to the Moon, bowed 
low before him, and said: 

“ Mighty Moon! you shed your mild rays 
over the whole earth; tell me if you know 
anything of a city called Muhlenberg.” 

The Moon replied, “ I indeed shine over 
the whole round earth, but I have never 
heard of any Muhlenberg. Therefore, I 
counsel you, seek out my brother the Sun; 
perhaps he can tell you something about it.” 

The young man thanked the Moon, and 
went to the Moon’s brother, the Sun, and 
said, “ Your brother the Moon sends greet¬ 
ing, and says, in case you know anything 
about the city Muhlenberg, you are to tell 


151 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


The Sun replied that he knew nothing of 
any such city, and sent him to the North- 
wind, saying, “ This wind blows every¬ 
where and searches out the most hidden 
corners; perhaps he knows the city.” 

But the North-wind sent him to the East- 
wind, and the East-wind sent him to the 
West-wind, and the West-wind sent him to 
the South-wind, the most fearful of all the 
winds. 1 

When the young man appeared before 
the South-wind, he bowed low and said, “ I 
bring you greetings from all your relatives, 
the Sun, the Moon, the North-wind, the 
East-wind, and the West-wind, and you are 
to give me some information about the city 
Muhlenberg.” 

Said the South-wind, “ I have just come 
from Muhlenberg. There will soon be 
grand doings in that city, for the Queen is 
going to be married.” 

1 This is evidence that the story originated in lands where 
the sirocco is dreaded. 


152 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


Then the young man implored the South- 
wind to take him there. The South-wind 
answered: 

“It is pretty far from here, and you 
don’t know the way; but take this apple, 
and wherever it rolls do you follow it, and 
you will come to Muhlenberg.” 

The young man bade the South-wind 
adieu and followed the apple, going on for 
a long, long time. Suddenly he came upon 
some robbers. He went up to them as if 
they were old acquaintances, exclaiming, 
“ Good-day to you, brothers! Are you right 
well? Here I am with you at last! ” 

They really believed that he was one of 
themselves, so they took him with them, and 
showed him a coat which had the power of 
rendering invisible the person who wore it. 
Next they showed him a pair of boots that 
would enable one to put a mile behind him 
at every step. He put on both the coat and 
the boots, as if to test the truth of the story, 
153 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 


and immediately made off. The robbers 
could not even think of trying to follow 
him, since they could not see him. 

So he rolled the apple again along the 
ground before him, and at last he arrived 
at Muhlenberg. He heard music in every 
part of the city, cannons were thundering, 
and above all swept the South-wind. 

When the South-wind saw him he went 
down and greeted him, saying, “ So here we 
are, at last, in Muhlenberg! ” 

The young man now went into the city, 
and, being still invisible, he helped himself 
to all the food and drink he wanted, and 
refreshed himself with his gossip, the South- 
wind. Then, taking leave of him, he made 
his way into the royal palace which had once 
been his own. There he saw the Queen be¬ 
side the newly chosen spouse whom she was 
about to marry, and heard her sigh: 

“ Just seven years ago to-day my beloved 
husband deserted me!” 


154 


THE VILA OF MUHLENBERG 

Upon this he began to sing a song which 
he used to be always singing when he was 
king. She recognized it at once, and, full 
of joy, cried out, “ That is my husband, 
my first good fortune! My wedding-guests, 
drink the foaming wine and take your leave. 
I have no need to marry, for my husband 
has come home again, my only joy and 
bliss! ” 

And from this time they lived long and 
happily together. Amd the Queen bore to 
her husband a son with a mole like a golden 
sword upon his arm, and a beautiful golden¬ 
haired daughter. 

So ends the story. 

“ I should like to go to the Moon,” ob¬ 
served the little boy. 

44 They don’t go nowadays,” said the other 
grandmother. 44 That was long ago, before 
my great-grandmother was born.” 


155 


CHAPTER XV 


THE LITTLE BOY HOMESICK 

T HE little boy did not know what to do 
with himself, for they were very busy 
getting dinner ready against his father’s 
return from the zemstvo. He did not know 
how to play in this house as he did in his 
own; he felt a little homesick, and presently 
he began to cry. 

“ What does that mean? ” asked his moth¬ 
er, who was making the onion-soup. 

The little boy only cried the more. “ I 
want my little grandmamma!” he said. 
“ She would tell me a story.” 

“ I’ll tell you a story,” said the other 
grandmother, who was making noodles. 
“ Come and stand by me. But there must 
be no more crying, and it must be a very 
156 


A SHORT STORY 


short story, for I am busy. Is that a bar¬ 
gain? ” 

The little boy dried his eyes and stood by 
the other grandmother to hear 

A SHORT STORY 

Once upon a time a Hungarian was cross¬ 
ing a brook. He had on a woollen coat with 
short sleeves. As long as were the sleeves, 
so long will be this story. If the sleeves 
had been longer, the story would have been 
longer too. 

“ That is a very short story,” said the lit¬ 
tle boy. 

44 So I promised you,” said the other 
grandmother. 44 1 have kept my part of 
the bargain, have I not? Now do you 
keep yours, and after dinner I will tell 
you a longer one. Only remember, no more 
tears! ” 

The little boy kept his part of the bar- 
157 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


gain, and after dinner the other grand¬ 
mother told him about 

THE GOLDEN APPLE-TREE AND THE 
NINE PEAHENS 

Once upon a time there was an Emperor 
who had three sons. Before his palace stood 
a golden apple-tree which bloomed and bore 
ripe fruit in one and the self-same night; but 
it was always plundered by some one who 
left not the slightest trace behind. 

At last the father said to his sons, “ Who 
can have made away with the fruit of our 
apple-tree ? ” 

Upon this the eldest son said, “ I will 
watch the tree to-night, and will teach the 
rogue to know better! ” 

So when twilight began to fall he went 
and laid himself down beneath the apple- 
tree to guard it. But he fell asleep just as 
the apples began to ripen, and when at dawn 
he awoke, the tree had been already stripped. 

158 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


He therefore went to his father and truth¬ 
fully told him the whole story. 

Then the second son pledged himself to 
guard the tree; but it happened with him 
precisely as with the other. He fell asleep 
under the apple-tree, and when the dawn¬ 
ing light awoke him not an apple remained 
upon the tree. 

It was now the turn of the youngest son 
to watch the tree. He made himself ready, 
went out to the tree, prepared his bed im¬ 
mediately under it, and laid himself down 
to sleep. Just at midnight he suddenly 
awoke. He cast a glance upward into the 
tree, the fruit of which was just beginning 
to ripen. The whole castle glittered with its 
golden sheen. 

At that very moment nine golden Pea¬ 
hens came flying by; eight of them settled 
upon the apple-tree, but the ninth flew down 
upon the young man’s bed and transformed 
herself into a beautiful maiden—a more 
159 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


beautiful was not to be found in the whole 
empire. 

So the two kissed and caressed each other 
until after midnight, when the maiden stood 
up, thanked him for the apples, and would 
have gone, but he entreated her earnestly to 
leave him at least one. She gave him two— 
one he was to keep for himself, the other he 
might give to his father. Then she trans¬ 
formed herself into a Peahen and flew away 
with the others. 

At daybreak the imperial Prince arose 
and carried the apples to his father, who 
was overjoyed at the sight, and heaped 
praises upon his son. 

When evening came again the imperial 
Prince made ready his resting-place, as on 
the former evening, in order to watch the 
apple-tree. Having had the same experi¬ 
ences as on the preceding night, he again 
brought two golden apples to his father. 

When this had gone on for several nights 
160 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


the brothers became envious, because they 
had not succeeded in guarding the apples. 
So they went to an old hag, who promised 
to spy upon the Prince and discover how he 
managed to guard the apple-tree so suc¬ 
cessfully. When evening came on, the old 
woman stole out to the tree, crept under the 
bed, and there hid herself. 

Presently the youngest imperial Prince 
came out and betook himself, as usual, to 
rest. About midnight the nine Peahens 
came, and eight settled down upon the tree 
while the ninth flew down to the bed and 
transformed herself into a maiden. The 
old hag slyly seized the long braid of the 
maiden’s hair, which hung down below 
the edge of the bed, and cut it off. But the 
maiden sprang up quickly, transformed her¬ 
self again into a Peahen and flew away, 
with all her companions following her, and 
so vanished. 

The imperial Prince sprang up and cried 
161 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


out, “ What is this? ” He searched around 
and perceived the old hag under the bed, 
seized her, dragged her out, and the next 
day commanded that she should be put to 
death. 

But the Peahens never returned to the 
apple-tree, and the imperial Prince mourned 
and bewailed himself without ceasing. At 
last he resolved to search for his little Pea¬ 
hen throughout the whole world, and never 
return home until he had found her. He 
told his resolution to his father, who tried 
to turn him from it, advising him to put the 
idea out of his head, and promising to find 
him another maiden, though he should have 
to search through his whole empire. But 
he spoke to deaf ears; the prince was firm, 
and set out with his servant to seek for his 
Peahen. 

For a long time he wandered up and 
down the world, and one day he came to a 
lake, beside which he saw a magnificent 
162 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


great castle. In the castle he found an an¬ 
cient dame, the Empress, and a little girl, 
her daughter. He asked the dame, “ In 
Heaven’s name, little mother, can you give 
me any news about nine golden Peahens? ” 

And the dame answered, “ To be sure I 
can, my son! They come every midnight 
to bathe in this lake. But leave those Pea¬ 
hens in peace. You shall have my little 
daughter, a splendid girl, and all my treas¬ 
ures shall be yours as well.” 

But he had no ear for the old dame’s 
offer and no eye for the daughter, being 
filled with longing to see the Peahens. He 
arose early in the morning and went out to 
watch for the Peahens on the border of the 
lake. 

But the old dame had bribed the Prince’s 
servant and given him a pair of bellows 
such as one blows the fire with, adding these 
directions: 

“ Do you see these bellows? When your 
163 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


master goes down to the lake, blow slyly 
upon his neck with them. He will then fall 
into a deep sleep and will not be able to 
speak with the Peahens.” 

And to this the wretch of a servant con¬ 
sented. 

When they were upon the lake-shore he 
seized a favorable opportunity and blew 
upon his master’s neck with the bellows, 
whereupon the poor Prince fell into a 
deathlike slumber. He had barely fallen 
asleep when the nine Peahens arrived; eight 
alighted in the lake, but the ninth flew to 
the Prince upon his steed, and began to em¬ 
brace and try to waken him. “ Awake, my 
life! Awake, my heart! Awake, my soul! ” 
But he moved no more than the dead. 

When the Peahens had bathed they all 
flew away, and he immediately awoke and 
asked the servant, “ What is the matter? 
Have they been here? ” 

The servant answered that nine Peahens 
164 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


had flown down to the lake; eight had gone 
into the water, but the ninth had come to 
him, the Prince, upon his horse, had caressed 
and tried to awaken him. At these words 
the poor imperial Prince had nearly laid 
violent hands upon himself. 

The next day he again mounted his steed 
and rode slowly along the lake-shore, his 
servant behind him. The servant again 
found an opportunity to blow upon his neck 
with the bellows, whereupon the Prince fell 
into a deathlike slumber. Scarcely was he 
asleep when the nine Peahens arrived; eight 
went down into the lake, but the ninth flew 
to him upon his steed, and began to em¬ 
brace him and try to awaken him, saying, 
“Awake, my life! Awake, my heart! 
Awake, my soul! ” 

But all in vain; he slept sounder than the 
dead. 

Then she said to the servant, “ Tell your 
master to wait for me here again to-morrow, 
165 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


for he will never see us here again after 
that,” and she again flew away. 

She was scarcely gone when the imperial 
Prince awoke and asked the servant, “ Have 
they been here? ” The servant replied, “To 
be sure, and they left word for you to ex¬ 
pect them here again to-morrow; but after 
that they will never again come to this 
place.” 

When the unhappy Prince heard this he 
was beside himself, and tore his hair for 
grief and pain. 

At dawn of the third day he again went 
down to the lake and rode along the shore, 
but at the fleetest pace possible, in order not 
to be overtaken by sleep. But even this 
time the servant found an opportunity to 
blow upon his neck with the bellows, where¬ 
upon the Prince immediately stretched him¬ 
self out upon the horse’s back and fell 
asleep. 

He was hardly asleep when the nine Pea- 
166 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


liens came flying to the spot. Eight of them 
went down into the lake, but the ninth flew 
to him upon the horse and began to embrace 
him and to call, “ Awake, my life! Awake, 
my heart! Awake, my soul!” But all in 
vain, for he slept like the dead. 

Then the Peahen said to the servant, 
4 4 When your master awakes, say to him, he 
must drive the upper wedge after the lower 
before he will be able to find me.” With 
these words the Peahens flew away. 

When they were gone the imperial Prince 
awoke and said to the servant, 44 Have they 
been here?” The servant answered, 44 To 
be sure, and the one which seated herself 
upon your horse gave me orders to tell you 
that you must drive the upper wedge after 
the lower , and then you would find her.” 

When he heard this the Prince drew his 
sword and struck off the servant’s head. 
Then he went on alone through the world. 

After long, long wanderings he reached 
167 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


a high mountain, where he spent the night 
with a hermit. From him he asked tidings 
of the nine Peahens. The hermit answered: 

“ My son, you are surely fortune’s own 
child! God himself has led you in the right 
way. It is hardly more than half a day’s 
journey from here to there. You have only 
to ride straight forward and you will come 
to a great gate. Then turn to the right and 
you will come straight to the city where their 
castle is.” 

By morning dawn the Prince awoke, 
dressed himself, pressed his warmest thanks 
upon the hermit, and set out in the direc¬ 
tion indicated. He went straight forward, 
reached the great gate, passed through it, 
and about noon he perceived a dazzling 
city, at sight of which his heart cried out 
for joy. 

In the city he inquired for the castle of 
the golden Peahens. At the castle-gate a 
guard stopped him, asked after his country 
168 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


and station, and when he had given the re¬ 
quired information the guard went in to an¬ 
nounce him to the Empress. 

When she heard of his arrival she ran to 
meet him like one beside herself—being, of 
course, in human form; and giving him her 
arm she led him into the castle. Great joy 
reigned through all the place, and after a 
few days the pair were married, and he re¬ 
mained thenceforth beside his beloved wife. 

After a time the Empress went on an 
excursion, leaving the Prince at home in 
the castle. Before going she gave him the 
keys of the twelve rooms on the ground 
floor, with the words, “You may go into 
all of them except the twelfth. Open that 
one on no account, for you stake your head 
in that game.” With this warning she went 
away. 

The imperial Prince remained alone in 
the castle, and began to wonder, “ What 
can be in that twelfth room? ” Upon this 


169 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


he opened one room after the other, and 
when he came to the twelfth he hesitated 
awhile about opening it. But the thought, 
“ What can be in there? ” gave him no rest. 

He therefore resolved to open the room; 
and lo! in the middle of it stood a great open 
cask encircled with iron hoops, and a voice 
from within cried, “ In Heaven’s name, 
brother, I adjure thee, give me a glass of 
water! I am perishing with thirst! ” 

The imperial Prince took a glass of water 
and poured it into the cask, whereupon one 
hoop of the cask fell off. Then again the 
voice cried out of the cask, “ For Heaven’s 
sake, brother, I am perishing with thirst! 
Give me another glass of water!” 

The imperial Prince poured in another 
glass of water, and the second hoop fell 
from the cask. A third time the voice cried 
from the cask, “ In Heaven’s name, brother, 
I am perishing with thirst! Give me one 
more glass of water!” 

170 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


The imperial Prince poured in a third 
glass, whereupon the third hoop dropped 
off, the cask fell asunder, and a Dragon flew 
out, and meeting the Empress upon the way, 
he carried her off as a prize. Soon her at¬ 
tendants came in with the news, and the un- 
happy imperial Prince knew not what to do 
for grief. 

He finally decided to set out once more 
in search of his wife, and so he wandered a 
long time up and down the world until he 
came to a sheet of water upon the border of 
which he saw a little Fish floundering about 
in a puddle. When the Fish saw the Prince 
he begged him earnestly: 

“ For Heaven’s sake, be a brother to me 
and throw me back into the water! Some 
day I may be of the greatest use to you. 
Only pull off one of my scales, and if you 
need my help rub it a little.” 

The imperial Prince took up the Fish and 
pulled out one of its scales. He threw the 
171 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


Fish into the water, but the scale he wrapped 
up in his handkerchief. 

After a time, while he was still wandering 
about in the wide world, he came upon a 
Fox which was caught in a trap. When the 
Fox saw him he cried, “ For Heaven’s sake, 
be a brother to me and set me free from this 
trap! I shall soon have occasion to do you 
service; only take one of my hairs, and when 
you need my service rub it a little.” So the 
imperial Prince took the hair and set the 
Fox at liberty. 

Later, as he was going over a high moun¬ 
tain, he found a Wolf in a trap. The Wolf 
also said to him when he saw him, “ For 
Heaven’s sake, be a brother to me and set me 
free. I will be your helper in time of need; 
only take out one of my hairs, and if you 
need my aid rub it a little.” 

So the imperial Prince took the hair and 
set the Wolf free, and then went on his 
journey. 


172 



The third hoop dropped off; the cask fell asunder, and a 
dragon Hew out 











THE NINE PEAHENS 


After a long time he met a man, to whom 
he said, “ In the name of Heaven, brother, 
have you ever heard where the Dragon-em- 
peror’s castle is? ” 

The man cheerfully told him, even to the 
very moment when he would best present 
himself there. The imperial Prince ex¬ 
pressed his thanks, went straight on, and at 
last, nearly dead with fatigue, he arrived at 
the Dragon’s castle. He found his beloved 
one there, and both were overjoyed at the 
meeting. 

Then they took counsel as to the best way 
to attempt a flight. They finally came to 
a decision, and, making ready with all de¬ 
spatch, they mounted their horses to flee. 
But they had hardly left the castle when the 
Dragon came riding home. He entered the 
castle, but the Empress was gone! 

So he said to his horse, “ What shall we 
do now? Shall we eat and drink comfort¬ 
ably, or shall we hasten after the fugitives? ” 
178 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


The horse replied, “Eat and drink; we 
shall soon overtake them. That is the least 
of your troubles.” 

After dinner, therefore, the Dragon 
mounted his horse, and in a trice had over¬ 
taken the fugitives. When he came up to 
them he snatched the Empress from the 
Prince, with the words, “ Go, in God’s name! 
I forgive you this time, because you gave 
me water; but never come back again, as 
you value your life.” 

The unhappy Prince went on a little far¬ 
ther, but the longing of his heart was too 
strong, and he turned about. The next day 
he reappeared in the Dragon’s castle. He 
found the Empress alone and drowned in 
tears. They again took counsel how they 
might escape, and the imperial Prince thus 
spoke his mind: 

“ When the Dragon comes home, ask him 
where he obtained that horse. Then do you 
tell me, that I may try to get one of the 
174 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


same kind, to outrun him if possible.” With 
these words he went away. 

When the Dragon came home the Em¬ 
press coaxed and cajoled him, talking of all 
sorts of things, until at last she said, “ Well, 
upon my word, you have a fleet horse! Tell 
me, in Heaven’s name, where did you get 
him? ” 

He replied, “ Where I got him it would 
not be easy to get another. In such-and- 
such a high mountain lives an old woman 
who has twelve horses, each one finer than 
the other, all standing before their mangers. 
But in the corner stands a wretched, mangy 
horse; at least he looks so at a first glance, 
but in fact he is the best one of all. He is 
the brother of my horse. Heaven itself 
would not be too far off for the owner of 
that steed. But whoever would get him 
from that old hag must serve her for three 
days. She has a mare and a foal, and she 
will require that they be watched for three 
175 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


nights. Whoever succeeds in doing so may 
choose among her horses. But if any one 
enters her service and fails to keep watch 
of the mare and colt, off goes his head! ” 
The next day when the Dragon was from 
home the imperial Prince came to learn what 
the Empress had discovered. Then he went 
to that high mountain where the old woman 
was, and greeted her with, “ God bless you, 
little mother!” and she answered with the 
pious greeting, “ God help you, my little 
son! What good luck brings you here? ” 
He: “ I have a mind to enter your 
service.” 

She: “ Very well, my little son. If you 
will keep watch of the mare and foal for 
three whole days, then you may take your 
choice among my horses; but if you fail, off 
goes your head! ” 

Upon this she led him into the courtyard. 
It was surrounded by a close paling, and on 
every pale was stuck a human head. Only 
176 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


one was unoccupied, and this one cried in¬ 
cessantly, “ Old woman, put a head here! ” 

The old woman showed all this to the 
Prince, with the words, “ You see, all these 
were in my service without being able to 
guard the mare.” 

The imperial Prince was not to be fright¬ 
ened by such an exhibition, but remained to 
serve the old woman. When it grew dark 
he mounted the mare and rode out into the 
field, the foal running along beside the 
mother. He sat constantly upon her back, 
but toward midnight he fell asleep, and 
when toward dawn he awoke he found him¬ 
self astride a block of wood, holding fast to 
the halter. 

When he saw this he was filled with hor¬ 
ror, and sprang up to search for the mare. 
In the course of his search he came upon a 
piece of water. It reminded him of the lit¬ 
tle Fish which he had rescued from the pud¬ 
dle and thrown into the lake. He therefore 
177 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


took the scale out of his handkerchief and 
rubbed it a little between his fingers. The 
Fish immediately spoke from the water, 
saying to him, “ What is your desire, brother 
soul? ” 

He answered, “ That old hag’s mare has 
given me the slip. I know not where to find 
her.” 

The Fish returned, “ She is here with us; 
she has transformed herself into a fish and 
the foal into a little fish. Just strike upon 
the water with the halter and say, 4 The old 
hag’s mare still lives! ’ ” 

So he struck upon the water, saying, 
44 The old hag’s mare still lives! ” and the 
mare became what she had been before and 
swam to the shore with her foal. He there¬ 
fore put the halter upon her neck again, 
mounted her, and returned to the house, the 
foal running along by her side. 

When they reached the house the old 
woman gave him food; but she led the mare 
178 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


into the stable and beat her with the oven- 
fork, saying, “ Go among the fishes, you 
wretch! ” 

The mare answered, “ Indeed, I did go 
among the fishes, but they are in league with 
him and they betrayed me.” 

Upon this the old hag rejoined, “ Then 
go among the foxes! ” 

Before dark the Prince again mounted 
the mare and went out into the field, the 
foal running alongside. He sat continually 
upon the mare, but toward midnight he fell 
asleep upon her back, and when he awoke 
he found himself astride a block of wood, 
holding fast to the halter. 

When he saw this he was overcome with 
terror and sprang upon his feet to seek the 
mare. Suddenly he remembered what the 
old woman had said to the mare, and he 
drew the Fox’s hair out of his kerchief, 
rubbed it between his fingers the least 
bit, and behold! the Fox stood before 
179 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


him, saying, “ What is the matter, brother 
soul? ” 

The Prince answered, “ The old hag’s 
mare has escaped me, and I do not know 
where to find her.” 

The Fox: “ She is among us; she has 
changed herself into a fox and the foal into 
a fox-cub. Just strike upon the ground 
with the halter and say, ‘ The old hag’s 
mare still lives! ’ ” 

So the Prince struck upon the earth with 
the halter, saying, “ The old hag’s mare still 
lives! ” and the mare again returned to her 
former shape and stood before him with her 
colt, as if she had just arisen from the earth. 
So he put the halter upon her, mounted, and 
rode back to the house, the foal running 
quietly at her side. 

Arrived at home, the old woman placed 
food before him; but she led the mare into the 
stable and fell upon her with the oven-fork, 
saying, “ Go among the foxes, you wretch! ” 
180 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


The mare answered, “ Indeed, I did go 
among the foxes, but they are in league with 
him and betrayed me.” She answered, 
“ Then go among the wolves! ” 

When evening came the imperial Prince 
mounted the mare and rode out to the field, 
with the foal running alongside. He sat 
continually upon her back, but about mid¬ 
night he fell asleep, and when he awoke he 
perceived that he was astride a block of 
wood, with the halter in his hand. When 
he saw this he sprang to his feet and began 
to search for the mare; but in a moment he 
remembered what the old woman had said, 
and without delay he drew forth the Wolf’s 
hair from his kerchief and rubbed it between 
his fingers. 

There was the Wolf upon the spot. 
“ What is the matter, brother soul? ” 

The Prince answered, “ The old hag’s 
mare has escaped, and I do not know where 
she is.” 


181 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


The Wolf: “ She is here among us; she 
has changed herself into a wolf and her foal 
into a wolf-cub. But strike upon the earth 
with the halter and say, ‘ The old hag’s 
mare still lives! ’ ” 

So he struck upon the earth with the 
halter, saying, “ The old bag’s mare still 
lives!” and, as before, she suddenly ap¬ 
peared, with the foal at her side. Then the 
imperial Prince put the halter upon her, 
mounted, and rode home, the foal running 
quietly by her side. 

Arrived at home, the old woman gave 
him food; but she led the mare into the 
stable and trounced her well with the oven- 
fork, crying to her, “ Why did you not go 
among the wolves? ” 

The mare answered, “ Indeed, I was 
among the wolves, but they are in league 
with him and betrayed me.” 

So the old woman came out, and the im¬ 
perial Prince said to her, “ See here, old 
182 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


woman, I have served you true and faith¬ 
ful; give me the wages you promised to 
give me.” 

The old woman: “ What has been prom¬ 
ised must be performed, my son; take 
your choice among the twelve horses in my 
stable.” 

But he answered, “ Ah, how should I 
choose ? Give me the one in the corner—that 
mangy one there; these fine steeds don’t 
suit me.” 

The old woman tried to talk him out of 
it. “ What whim is this, choosing that 
mangy beast when there are so many splen¬ 
did horses here? ” 

But he stood by his choice, and said, 
“Give me the one I want; that was the 
agreement.” 

The old woman saw no help for it, and 
gave him the mangy horse, whereupon he 
took leave of her and went away, leading 
the horse by the bridle. As soon as he found 
183 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


himself in the forest he rubbed and curried 
his horse until his coat shone like pure gold. 
Then he mounted him and set out at full 
speed. The horse flew like the wind, and in 
a twinkling had borne him to the Dragon’s 
castle. 

As soon as the imperial Prince had en¬ 
tered he said to the Empress, “ Get ready 
for the journey as quickly as possible! ” 

In a moment both were ready. They 
mounted the horse and set forth in the name 
of God. 

Somewhat later the Dragon came home 
and found the Empress gone. He therefore 
asked his horse, “ What now? Shall we eat 
and drink at our ease, or shall we pursue 
after them? ” 

And the horse replied, “ Eat or not, drink 
or not, pursue or not, you will never over¬ 
take them.” 

When the Dragon heard this he sprang 
upon his horse and rushed after them. 

184 


THE NINE PEAHENS 


When the pair saw the Dragon coming 
on behind them they were overcome with 
affright and spurred the horse to greater 
speed. Now the horse was a Vila, and he 
said to them, “ Have no fear; you have no 
need to hasten.” 

Now and again, as the Dragon gained 
upon them, the Dragon’s horse cried to the 
Prince’s horse, “ For Heaven’s sake, brother, 
wait a little. I shall burst if I have to chase 
you any longer.” ^ 

But the other answered, “ What a fool 
you are to carry that demon upon your 
back! Rear up smartly and dash him upon 
the rocks, and come w T ith me!” 

When the Dragon’s horse heard this he 
ducked his head with all his might, and, 
throwing out his hind legs, he flung the 
Dragon upon the rocks, where he was 
dashed to fragments. Then the Dragon’s 
horse joined the fugitives, the Empress 
mounted him, and so they went safely home 
185 


THE WONDERFUL STORY 


to their own empire, and reigned there until 
their dying day. 

“ I like Vilas very much, mother’s-moth- 
er,” said the little boy. “ Can you tell any 
more Vila stories? ” 

“ Father says we are going home to¬ 
morrow,’’ said the little boy’s mother, who 
had long ago finished the housework and 
was sitting there with her knitting. 

“ But it isn’t night yet,” said the little 
boy eagerly. “You could tell me another 
story before night.” 

“ Tell him the wonderful story you used 
to tell me when I teased you for another,” 
said the mother, laughing. 

“ Well,” said the other grandmother; and 
she told 


THE WONDERFUL STORY 

“ Ah, little mother, little mother, come, 
tell me a pretty fairy tale! ” 

186 


THE WONDERFUL STORY 


“ Well, would you like to hear the story 
of the Black Bear and the Ram? It is a 
very sad story.” 

“ Oh, yes, yes! ” 

“ I didn’t say 4 Oh, yes, yes,’ but 4 Would 
you like to hear the tale of the Black Bear 
and the Ram? ’ ” 

“ Yes, indeed, only tell it quick! ” 

“ I didn’t say 4 Yes, indeed, only tell it 
quick,’ but 4 Would you like to hear the tale 
of the Black Bear and the Ram? ’ ” 

44 O dear mother, if you don’t tell it soon 
I shall begin to cry! ” 

44 Did I not tell you it was a sad story? 
However, I did not say 4 O dear mother, 
if you don’t tell it soon I shall begin to cry,’ 
but 4 Would you like to hear the tale of the 
Black Bear and the Ram? ’ ” 

44 Would you like to hear the tale of the 
Black Bear and the Ram? ” 

44 There, you see, you know most of it 
already, and there is only the end: 

187 


THE WONDERFUL STORY 


“ The Black Bear and the Ram, 

The Ram and the Black Bear, 

They couldn’t endure each other, 

And so my story ends there.” 

Done already? 

The little boy listened with a very sober 
face. Finally he said: 

“ Why did you use to tell mother that 
story? ” 

44 Because that is the way to silence teas¬ 
ing children,” replied the other grand¬ 
mother. 44 They used to do just the way it 
tells in the story in my great-grandmother’s 
time.” 

Again there was a pause. The knitting- 
needles clicked fast. 

44 Am I a teasing child? ” asked the little 
boy at last. 

44 No, you are not, bless your little heart! ” 
said the other grandmother. 44 Mother’s- 
mother likes to tell you stories. Only you 
188 


THE WONDERFUL STORY 


should not sit quiet too long. You ought to 
play now.” 

The little boy went close to the other 
grandmother’s side, and looking up into her 
face, he said very coaxingly: 

“ But I am going away to-morrow, little 
mother’s-mother. Won’t you tell me one 
more story? ” 

“ Rim out and see if the sun is setting,” 
said the other grandmother. “ If it has not 
yet gone down I will tell you another story.” 

The little boy ran out in the greatest 
hurry. The other grandmother’s house was 
upstairs and it had no court—that was why 
she kept neither cow nor fowl. So he had 
to run down the dark stone stairway, and he 
was in such haste that he fell down the last 
two steps. But he picked himself up and 
ran out. There at the far end of the long 
street was the sun, still quite above the 
clouds that would wrap him up in bed by 
and by. 


189 


THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


The little boy ran upstairs, breathless. 
“He is up, mother’s-mother! He hasn’t 
gone to bed yet! The story, please! ” 

And the other grandmother told about 

THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 

Once upon a time there was a father who 
had three sons. Two of them passed for 
clever, but the third and youngest was 
stupid, as every one agreed. When people 
wanted anything done they only called upon 
the two clever ones, while they would not let 
the stupid one have anything to do with 
them. 

In their father’s garden was a silver pear- 
tree which every night bore flowers and 
fruit; but the pears were regularly plucked 
and carried away by the Vilas. “ What the 
mischief! ” said the eldest and the second 
brother, “ how long is this thing going to 
last? ” and they determined to mount guard 
over the tree. But to their youngest brother 
190 


THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


they said, “ You are too stupid for this 
work.” 

So they carried feather-beds and pillows 
out under the tree, lay down, and went to 
sleep. While they were sleeping the Vilas 
came, plucked the pears, and went away. 
As soon as they were gone the brothers 
awoke, went back to the house, and told what 
had happened. 

Then the stupid brother declared that he 
would watch the tree. That he might not 
be overcome with sleep he made himself a 
bed of thorns; but in spite of all he fell 
asleep. Yet he awaked when the Vilas 
came, and saw one of them standing at 
his side. He pulled out one of her hairs, 
whereupon the Vila vanished. 

When morning came he saw that the hair 
was of gold. Going home, he told what had 
happened to him, and declared his intention 
to go through the world to seek out that 
Vila. But the two clever brothers answered, 
191 


THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


“What would you be able to find? It is 
better for us two clever ones to go and seek 
her. Something may come of it then.” 

So the two set out upon their way. The 
eldest found a shovel and took it with him, 
and it did him good service. For when they 
got to the Moon they found the door locked. 
Then they dug under the door and went in. 
They found only the Moon-mother at home, 
and of her they inquired if such-and-such a 
Vila lived there. 

The Moon-mother answered, “ She lives 
in the Sun. How will you get there? But 
see, here is a spider; she shall spin you a 
chain that will reach from here to there.” 

The spider went to work, spun a chain, 
and fastened it to the lock of the Sun-door. 
So the brothers set out upon this bridge; but 
while they were on the way the Sun came 
home, opened the door, and snapped the 
chain in two. So the brothers fell off, and 
very luckily they tumbled into their god- 
192 


THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


father’s cabbage-garden. So they felt no 
harm, but went home and told their ad¬ 
ventures. 

Then the stupid brother set out. He 
found an ancient crone and begged her to 
show him the way to the Moon. The old 
crone told him it was not very hard to go 
there, and gave him a bucketful of down. 
So he seated himself in the bucket and flew 
up to the Moon. 

He entered the house and asked if a cer¬ 
tain Vila lived there who looked so-and-so. 
The Moon-mother answered, No, she lived 
in the Sun. So he flew up to the Sun, ar¬ 
rived there safely, and carefully hid his 
bucket in the cellar in the coolest place he 
could find, that it might not be melted by 
the heat. 

Meantime the Sun came home and asked, 
“ What is your wish? ” 

“ I seek such-and-such a Vila.” 

The Sun brought her out and gave her 
193 


THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


to him, and he seated himself beside her in 
the bucket and set out. 

When they were half-way home the Sun 
came out to see how the travellers were get¬ 
ting on; and he shone on them so scorch- 
ingly that all the down was melted, the 
bucket lost its balance, and the youth and 
the Vila fell down to earth and were caught 
in a tree. They cannot go down, for under 
the tree sits an old wizard sorting out a cap¬ 
ful of human hairs. But the Vila slipped 
softly down the tree and put the wizard to 
sleep. Then the youth clambered down and 
took the Vila home. 

They reached his father’s house, where he 
told all his adventures; but the Vila was in¬ 
visible to every one but her rescuer, so that 
no one believed his story. Then the Vila be¬ 
gan to weep, and the brothers said, “ Good! 
now we believe that she is here, but just 
where she is we do not know.” 

Meantime the old wizard under the tree 
194 



Then the youth clambered down and took the Vila home 
































































THE YOUTH AND THE VILA 


awoke, started out, and came into the room 
where they were. He greeted the Vila with 
“ Good-day! ” whereupon she became visible 
to every one as a beautiful maiden. 

Soon after the youth married her. I was 
present at the wedding, ate and drank with 
the old man and conversed much with him; 
and we moistened our throats so often with 
sweet wine from Zagorje that my grand¬ 
father and I can taste it yet. 

“ Can you really, mother’s-mother? ” ex¬ 
claimed the little boy. 

The other grandmother laughed. “ That 
is only the way it ends,” she said. “ Some 
stories end that way.” 


195 


CHAPTER XVI 


THE LITTLE BOY SLEEPLESS 

T HE little boy could not sleep. The 
room was full of people very excitedly 
talking about the action of the zemstvo on 
some subject of importance, and although 
he did not understand a word that they were 
saying, the talking and the thought of to¬ 
morrow’s journey kept him awake. He was 
lying on a pallet laid upon the bench against 
the wall in a far corner of the room, and he 
turned over so often that at last he fell upon 
the floor. He tried hard not to cry, but he 
could not quite help it. 

The other grandmother picked him up 
and cuddled him in her arms. “ Go to 
sleep,” she said, patting him gently. 

196 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 


The little boy shut his eyes, but in a min¬ 
ute they were open again. 

“ Mother’s-mother, I can’t sleep. Couldn’t 
you tell me one more story, very softly, so 
that the others can’t hear? ” 

The other grandmother laid the little boy 
back upon his pallet, covered him up warm, 
and told him about 

THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 

Once upon a time there was a father who 
had three sons. One day he bade the eldest 
go into the garden and keep watch that the 
swans did not eat the flowers. The son kept 
watch a long time, but at last sleep over¬ 
came him, and immediately the swans came 
and ate up the flowers. 

Now these were not really swans, but 
Vilas. 

Upon this the second brother betook him¬ 
self to the garden, and with the same result. 

Then it was the youngest brother’s turn; 
197 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 

but this one put thorns under his head, so 
that he could not go to sleep. He lay there 
in a doze until the swans arrived; then, 
springing nimbly upon his feet, he caught 
one of them, which changed herself into a 
Vila. Upon this the other swans flew away, 
and the Vila and the youth both lay down 
and fell asleep. 

Shortly after a girl came along that way 
and cut off the Vila’s hair. When the Vila 
awoke she fell into the deepest dejection 
over the loss. The youth asked her, “ My 
beloved, wherefore so sorrowful? ” and she 
answered, “ Some one has robbed me of my 
hair.” 

She remained with him for a whole week. 
Then, as it chanced, he was obliged to go 
away somewhere, and she improved the op¬ 
portunity to quit the house—not, however, 
without leaving word that he would find her 
in the golden castle. 

When he returned home and asked after 
198 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 


her, he learned that she had gone to the 
golden castle. He therefore set out to find 
it. After much walking he came to a great 
forest, where he met an old man, whom he 
asked if he could give him any information 
about the golden castle. 

The old man said he knew nothing about 
it, but perhaps a still older man, who lived 
a long way off in the forest, might know 
where it was. After long wandering the 
youth found this man, but neither could he 
give him any information, but sent him to a 
still older man. So he sought out the third 
old man, and from him he received the de¬ 
sired information. 

The young man set out in the direction 
indicated, arrived at the castle, and per¬ 
ceived his beloved one, who smiled kindly 
upon him. In the castle he found an old 
Vila, who told him that he should not have 
her daughter to wife until he had executed 
the order which she was about to give. 

199 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 


Then she handed him a wooden hoe, with 
the words: 

“ If you wish to be my son-in-law you 
must root up all this forest, plant vines in 
its place, and bring me wine from their 
fruit; and all must be done to-day.” 

This command he certainly could not 
obey; but his beloved one drew near and 
asked him, “ Why are you so sorrowful? ” 

He answered, “ Why should I not be 
sorrowful? I can surely never obey that 
command.” 

Then she cut down a tree, and the whole 
forest was uprooted; she planted a vine, and 
the whole vineyard was planted; she pressed 
one grape, and the work was already done. 

When he brought the wine into the castle 
the old Vila said: 

“You must perform another task. In a 
single day you must sow wheat, reap and 
thresh it, and store it away in the granary.” 

He would not have been equal to this task 
200 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 


either had not his beloved one done it for 
him. 

When he showed the old Vila the threshed 
wheat she was still not satisfied, but said: 

“ If you wish to be my son-in-law you 
must gild the whole castle.” To this end 
she gave him a golden nut. 

He succeeded in gilding a hand’s breadth, 
but more he could not do. Then his beloved 
came to his help; she only made a cross, and 
in a twinkling the whole was done. 

Still the old Vila said, “ If you are posi¬ 
tively determined upon being my son-in- 
law you must to-morrow guess which Vila 
is yours. I may tell you beforehand that 
they all look precisely alike, even to a hair.” 

Then his beloved one told him to notice 
well. When all the Vilas were standing in 
a row, a little dog would come and nose 
around her alone, and he must say, “ That 
one is she.” She also gave him a comb, and 
a brush into the bargain, saying that they 
201 


THE VILA IN THE GOLDEN CASTLE 


would be of the greatest use to them in their 
flight. 

The next day, when the Vilas stood in a 
row before him, the little dog came and 
nosed around one of them. He at once said 
that this was she, and immediately they took 
to flight, the old Vila after them. 

She had almost overtaken the fugitives, 
but the youth threw the brush behind them, 
and a thick forest grew up at their back, so 
that they gained a considerable start. But 
the old Vila soon overcame this hinderance, 
and had nearly caught up to them when, at 
the very moment, he threw the comb behind 
him. Instantly a great river flowed between 
them which the old woman could not cross. 

Thus the two got away at last, arrived 
safely at home, married, and lived in happi¬ 
ness till their dying day. 

The little boy made no remark. He was 
sound asleep. 


202 


CHAPTER XVII 


HOME AGAIN 

TT was already dark when they reached 
home, though it was not late, for Janu¬ 
ary days are very short. There had been no 
children at the station, only men, and the 
walk home had seemed very long to the little 
boy. The men were talking very loudly, 
sometimes even angrily—they did not seem 
to be pleased with what the little boy’s 
father told them about the zemstvo. It had 
not done what the people of the village 
wanted. 

“ Well, God and the mir for us all! ” said 
the little boy’s father as they reached the 
house. 

All the family were gathered to meet 
them—the grandmother, the oldest brother 
203 


HOME AGAIN 


and his wife, and the brother and sisters who 
lived at home. They were glad to see the 
little boy, but they all seemed more inter¬ 
ested in what the father had to say about 
the zemstvo , and the little boy could not 
understand that at all. Though his grand¬ 
mother held him by the hand and occasion¬ 
ally patted him on the head, she hardly 
spoke to him. Presently, however, she went 
to her own room, taking the little boy with 
her, and then it was his turn! His little 
tongue ran fast as he told her all about the 
journey and the other grandmother and the 
stories she had told him. 

“ You never told me about the Vilas, lit¬ 
tle grandma,” he said. 

“ Did I not tell you that the stories of her 
mir are not the same as the stories of our 
mirl ” replied the grandmother. “ I do not 
know those Vila stories.” 

“But you know other stories, very nice 
stories, little grandmamma,” said the little 
204 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


boy. Then, after a pause, “ Please tell me 
one now! ” 

Then the grandmother told the story of 
PRINCE HEDGEHOG 

Once upon a time there was an Emperor 
and an Empress who for many years had 
been childless. One day the Empress wished 
for a son, were he no bigger than a hedge¬ 
hog. The proverb says, “ What one wishes 
for, that one gets,” and so it was with her, 
for she shortly gave birth to a son who 
looked exactly like a hedgehog and was cov¬ 
ered all over with sharp spines. 

Far and wide the news was spread abroad 
through the world, and the parents were 
much ashamed of such a son. Nevertheless, 
they had him educated in all useful knowl¬ 
edge, and he had so clever a head that by the 
time he was fourteen he knew all knowledge 
through and through. 

By this time his parents could no longer 
205 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


endure him near them, and they assigned to 
him a great forest as a place of abode, feeling 
certain that he would then fall a prey to a 
wolf or a fox or some sort of a beast. They 
strictly commanded him not to return before 
the expiration of seven years. They gave 
him permission, however, to take with him 
anything that he especially cared for; but 
he would take nothing with him except a 
Sow and a great Cock upon which he was 
wont to ride. With these he went away into 
the forest. 

Year out, year in, Prince Hedgehog re¬ 
mained in the forest, and he raised so many 
swine that at last they were too many for 
even him to count. Finally he thought to 
himself, “ My seven years are up; I will go 
back home.” So he quickly gathered his 
swine together and drove them to the city 
of his parents. 

When they perceived afar off the im¬ 
mense drove of swine, they thought, “ Here 
206 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


comes a wealthy swine-drover.” But soon 
they recognized their son, who was riding 
upon his Cock behind the swine and making 
straight for the imperial castle. So they 
received him into the castle and showed him 
the best of hospitality, dividing his swine 
among different pens, for they filled every 
swine-pen in the city. 

While they were at table they asked their 
son how he enjoyed himself in the forest, 
and said that if he wished to go back there 
they would give him a goat this time. But 
he declared that he was not going back, for 
he had made up his mind to marry. 

The astonished parents replied, “ Why, 
what maiden would love you and take you 
for a husband? ” The poor youth knew no 
answer to this question, so he mounted his 
Cock and rode away. 

Now the parents thought he would never 
come back again. But he was a clever fel¬ 
low, and he went as a suitor to the King of 
207 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


of a neighboring country who had three un¬ 
married daughters. 

When he found himself near the city the 
Cock flew up with him to the window of 
the room in which the company were as¬ 
sembled enjoying themselves. The Cock 
crowed with all his might, until the cham¬ 
berlain went to the window and asked what 
he wanted. The Hedgehog answered, “ I 
come a-wooing.” 

Then the King permitted him to come 
into the room, and off ered him the welcome- 
cup, according to ancient manner and cus¬ 
tom. Then the King again asked him what 
business brought him, and Hedgehog, the 
imperial Prince, answered him shortly and 
to the point, “ I come a-wooing.” 

The King immediately assured him that 
he had only to choose one of the three un¬ 
married daughters. The Hedgehog chose 
the youngest, but she would not have him 
for a husband until her father threatened to 
208 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


have her shot unless she gave a cheerful 
consent. 

She saw no help for it, and thought to 
herself, “ I can never get out of this scrape; 
come what may, I’ll take him. We have 
gold and treasure in abundance, and we 
shall easily get along through life.” 

When the Hedgehog had received her 
consent he went back to his parents and 
told them what had happened to him. His 
parents would not believe him, and sent the 
chamberlain to inquire if it was true that 
the Emperor’s son, the Hedgehog, was to 
marry the King’s daughter. When the 
chamberlain returned and told the Emperor 
that his son had spoken the truth, the Em¬ 
peror ordered his horses to be harnessed, and 
went with his wife to visit the King, riding 
in their carriage, while their son rode behind 
on his Cock. 

When they arrived they found everything 
ready for the wedding. But, according to 
209 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


custom, the bridal party were obliged to go 
to the church a few days before the mar¬ 
riage to pray and confess to the pop. When 
the young lady came to confession she asked 
the pop how she might manage to get rid 
of the Prince and not be obliged to marry 
him. 

The pop gave her a sound scolding, and 
said in conclusion, “ Just keep quiet and all 
will end well. Mark what I say, and re¬ 
member it well. When you are come into 
the church and are taking your place in the 
sacristy, do you follow close behind the 
others. When you get to the high altar 
sprinkle your bridegroom thrice with holy- 
water, and be careful to prick yourself each 
time with one of his spines. Then three 
drops of blood will trickle out of your hand, 
and you must let these also fall upon him.” 

After confession the bridal pair went 
home to breakfast. The next day—it was 
a Sunday—the bridal party went at half- 
210 


PRINCE HEDGEHOG 


past eleven into the church, and the bride 
did in every respect as the pop had coun¬ 
selled. 

And, behold, the Hedgehog was trans¬ 
formed into a beautiful youth whose like 
was not to be found in all the world. Then 
the bridal party sat down upon the benches 
and heard Mass, and the pop united them 
and preached them a sermon how they 
should cleave to each other all their lives 
long. 

After that they went back to the house, 
and the wedding-feast lasted until late in 
the night. The wine was very good. I sat 
at the head of the last table, drank yellow 
wine out of a painted cup and ate half a 
swine all by myself. 

“ Some stories end that way, don’t they, 
grandmother?” asked the little boy. 

“ Yes,” said the grandmother, “ some of 
them do.” 


211 


CHAPTER XVIII 


THE BETROTHAL, 

E ASTER DAY had come, and every¬ 
body in the house was giving and re¬ 
turning the Easter greeting. The little boy 
ran into his grandmother’s room. 

“ Christ is risen, little grandmamma! ” he 
said. 

“ He is risen indeed,” the grandmother 
answered. 

The older brother and sisters came to 
salute their grandmother. 

“ Christ is risen!” each one said to her, 
and to each she answered: 

“ He is risen indeed.” 

Then they all went to the parents’ room 
for the morning prayer. They did this 
every morning, for Russian peasants are 
212 


THE BETROTHAL 


very devout; but Easter was a special morn¬ 
ing, and they sang many hymns and said 
many prayers. When they had finished, the 
married son and his wife came in. 

“Christ is risen, father and mother!” 
they said. 

“ He is risen indeed,” the parents an¬ 
swered. 

After church, which seemed very long to 
the little boy, they all came home to dinner. 
With them came a strange young man 
whom the little boy did not know. When 
they sat down at table he sat at the head 
and the little boy’s elder sister beside him. 
She had beautiful flowers in her hair. 

“ Why does sister wear flowers in her 
hair? ” the little boy asked his grandmother 
softly. 

“ Because she is a bride,” whispered the 
grandmother. “ She is betrothed to that 
young man. He will be your brother when 
they are married next autumn.” 

213 


THE DESERTER 


All the afternoon there were games and 
merriment, and many people came to con¬ 
gratulate the young people and to drink 
tea. As the merriment grew louder the lit¬ 
tle boy grew tired of it, and he went to ask 
his grandmother for a story. She, too, was 
tired of the lively doings in the other room, 
and she very willingly told him about 

THE DESERTER 

Once upon a time there was a deserter 
who was three times faithless to his colors. 
Twice had he undergone the punishment due 
to desertion; the third time, he knew, he was 
face to face with death. So he resolved to 
flee by night and hide himself by day in 
some ditch or thicket, for he was afraid that 
in the daylight he might be recognized and 
arrested. 

One night, as he was hastening onward, 
he saw a glimmer of light in the distance, 
and thought to himself, “ I will go toward 
214 


THE DESERTER 


that light; perhaps it will somehow help me 
out of my trouble.” 

When, however, he came up to that light 
all he saw was an opening just wide enough 
for him to creep into. The moment he was 
inside thick darkness fell upon him. He 
could find his way neither in nor out; but 
on groping around he at last came upon a 
staircase, up which he climbed and found 
himself in a passageway. Through this 
passageway he went for a long, long time, 
until at last he stumbled upon a door. He 
opened the door and stepped into a room, 
but it was pitch dark there too; so he 
groped all about until at last he stumbled 
upon another door and entered another 
room. 

So on he went through eleven rooms, and 
finally reached the twelfth, where at last he 
found a lighted candle upon a table. The 
room was beautifully fitted up, and he 
thought within himself, “ Come what come 
215 


THE DESERTER 


may, I shall make myself at home in this 
room.” 

So he stretched himself upon a couch. 
He lay there for a while lost in thought, 
when, lo and behold! the table began to lay 
itself. When the cloth was spread, all sorts 
of good cheer began to appear upon it. 

“ Come what come may,” he thought to 
himself again, “ I am hungry.” So he fell 
to and ate to his heart’s content. When he 
had eaten all that he could swallow he threw 
himself upon the couch again and began to 
consider. 

Suddenly three women entered, clothed 
entirely in black. One seated herself at the 
piano, while the two others danced. Tired 
as he was, when he saw this he arose and 
skipped about with them. After this enter¬ 
tainment they began to talk with him, speak¬ 
ing of one thing and another, and finally 
came round to the question how he might 
break the spell that bound them. 

216 


THE DESERTER 


They told him the very way and manner 
of doing it, saying that he had nothing more 
nor less to do than to pass the night in a cer¬ 
tain room which they would show him. A 
ghost would come there and pester him with 
all sorts of questions—who he was, how he 
had come there, and other things. But he 
must not say a mortal word to all these ques¬ 
tions, not though the ghost tormented him 
in all sorts of ways; if he could only hold 
out in silence the ghost would vanish, and 
then he would feel not the least pain from 
all the torments he had been enduring. 

Our deserter fell in with the proposition 
without further words, and the ladies es¬ 
corted him to the fateful room with the 
sound of music and left him there alone. 
When they were gone he undressed himself, 
bolted the door securely, and lay down in 
bed. But he could not sleep, for his head 
throbbed with expectation of what was about 
to happen. 


217 


THE DESERTER 


At eleven o’clock a sudden knock was 
heard at the door. He dared not make a 
sound, for he was firmly resolved to ransom 
himself, the ladies, and the enchanted castle; 
so he kept as still as a mouse. Again the 
knocking came, but he made no answer. At 
the third knock the door flew open, and 
in walked a gigantic form all clothed in 
flames. 

The giant placed himself at the bedside 
and began to ask the man whence he was 
and why he had come; but the deserter never 
uttered a word. Then the giant seized him, 
threw him upon the floor, and began to tor¬ 
ment him; but no sound passed the sufFerer’s 
lips. At the stroke of twelve the ghost de¬ 
parted, with the words: 

“ Though you wouldn’t tell to-day, you 
will to-morrow, when we all three come.” 

He spoke, the door flew open, closed 
again, and he was gone. The young man 
arose from the floor, lay down upon his bed, 
218 


THE DESERTER 


and fell sweetly asleep, without feeling the 
least harm. 

Next morning came the three ladies, all 
in white up to their knees, and led him, with 
sound of music, back to the room where he 
had been on the previous day. They placed 
a chair for him and set a delicious breakfast 
before him. When he had plentifully break¬ 
fasted he fell asleep and snored till eve¬ 
ning. 

When he awoke he asked how late it was. 
The ladies replied that it was nine o’clock; 
and they gave him a good supper and led 
him again to the same room to sleep. 

At the stroke of eleven some one knocked 
at the door. He made no sound, but at the 
third knock the door flew open and three 
ghosts entered. The one who had been there 
the night before asked him the same ques¬ 
tions as before, but received no better an¬ 
swer. Then one of them seized him and 
flung him into one corner, and another into 
219 


THE DESERTER 


another, and so they tossed him about until 
the poor fellow lay helpless against the wall, 
all covered with blood. 

When the clock struck twelve the spokes¬ 
man said to him, “ Though you won’t an¬ 
swer to-night, you will to-morrow, when we 
all four come.” With these words they dis¬ 
appeared. 

He again lifted himself up, lay down 
upon his bed, and felt no harm. In the 
morning the three ladies came, all in white 
up to their girdles, and escorted him, to the 
sound of music, into the other room, where, 
after breakfast, he again fell asleep. 

At night they again escorted him to his 
chamber to sleep. When they were gone he 
did not go to bed as usual, but began to con¬ 
sider how he might avoid the fearful tor¬ 
ment in store for him. First he looked out 
at a window, but his gaze fell upon a fright¬ 
ful abyss enclosed by rocky precipices. He 
went to the second window, but there it 
220 


THE DESERTER 


was no better, but seemed to be even more 
fearful. 

So nothing was left him but to heap all 
the furniture of the room before the door, 
in hope thus to escape his tormentors. But 
he soon gave up this hope, for about mid¬ 
night the knocking began. He made no 
answer, but at the third knock the door flew 
open and all the furniture returned to its 
own place. 

The ghost who had before questioned him 
now began to repeat his questions, com¬ 
manding him to tell who he was and how he 
came there; but the young man was not to 
be made to speak. Then the spokesman or¬ 
dered one of his comrades to go below and 
bring up an anvil and four hammers, and 
when these had been brought, one of the 
ghosts blew up a fire and threw the young 
man upon it. When he was heated to a 
glow they laid him upon the anvil and beat 
him with hammers until he was as flat as 
221 


THE DESERTER 


paper. But with all this he was not to be 
forced to speak. 

The time was up and the ghosts must go. 
Before they went they told him that he and 
all around him were blessed; and then the 
door flew open and they vanished. He 
again arose, laid himself upon the bed, and 
sank at once into slumber. 

Next morning the three ladies, all in 
white from head to foot, came, with the 
sound of music, to thank him for ransoming 
them, and they gave him leave to choose 
among them for a wife. Now the youngest 
of them had grown nearest his heart, and he 
declared himself ready to marry her, not at 
once, but later, for first he wished to see 
something of the world. 

This being the case, they gave him a ham, 
a wooden flask of wine, a loaf of bread, three 
dogs, and a pipe which hung by a golden 
chain, and they told him that these dogs 
would come to his aid in every time of need; 

222 


THE DESERTER 


he had only to call them by means of his 
pipe. And should he be tired, he had only 
to seat himself upon one of them. So he 
took all these things and went forth to see 
the world. 

One day when he was travelling through 
a forest he arrived at a castle and turned 
aside to enter. But the steps which led up 
were of such a kind that he could not climb 
them; so he seated himself upon one of his 
dogs and the animal carried him up. As 
he passed through the entrance he peeped 
through a window and saw a Tiger and his 
wife, who was combing his hair. 

He went in to where they were, and the 
Tiger at once arose, led him from room 
to room, and showed him many wonderful 
things. Everything pleased the young man, 
except that the Tiger’s wife kept the dogs 
shut up in a room apart. 

When he entered the fourth room he went 
around it, gazing upon the many statues 
223 


THE DESERTER 


and paintings; and while thus doing he 
stepped upon a board which gave way and 
let him fall into a cellar where it was as dark 
as pitch. He groped around for a way of 
escape, but a damp, heavy wind seemed to 
sweep all around him, and first he would 
wound his hand and then his foot. So he 
thought to himself, “ You won’t come safely 
out of this! ” 

After a while the Tiger let himself down 
by a rope, butcher-knife in hand, intending 
to kill him. The young man begged for a 
half-hour’s respite, that he might do pen¬ 
ance for his sins. This was granted, but the 
time soon flew by, and the Tiger was al¬ 
ready whetting his knife to stab him, when 
the young man sprang aside, and his hand 
met the chain upon which the pipe was hang¬ 
ing. He blew upon it, and quick as thought 
the dogs were on the spot. He set them 
upon the Tiger, but as they fell upon him 
the Tiger begged humbly for life, promis- 
224 


THE DESERTER 


ing that his wife would draw him and his 
dogs up out of the cellar. 

So it came to pass; but they were no 
sooner out than he again set the dogs upon 
the Tiger, who again began to beg, prom¬ 
ising to give him a salve which had the 
power of fastening against the wall any one 
upon whose back it was rubbed, and keeping 
him there fast and firm until he chose to let 
him go. 

The youth took the salve and went on 
farther, till he reached a city which was all 
shrouded in mourning. He entered and 
asked why every one was in mourning, and 
received answer that a fearful Dragon was 
to come that day and carry off the Em¬ 
peror’s daughter. 

At this he laughed heartily, and said, 
“That may easily be helped; just go and 
announce to the Emperor that I am ready to 
ransom the Princess, if it is agreeable to 
him.” This was announced, and the Em- 
225 


THE DESERTER 


peror received him into the castle with great 

j°y- 

As the appointed time for the Dragon’s 
coming had arrived, the young man placed 
himself in readiness. At the stroke of 
twelve the Dragon suddenly appeared, driv¬ 
ing four horses. The young man was wait¬ 
ing for him, and as soon as the Dragon had 
taken the Princess by the hand to carry her 
off he spread the salve upon his back, 
pressed him against the wall, and set his 
dogs upon him. At the same time he be¬ 
labored him with the butt-end of his mus¬ 
ket, till the Dragon was quite exhausted 
and began to beg off, promising to give a 
written agreement never again to molest the 
Princess. When he had written the paper 
in his own blood and signed it he vanished 
through the window. 

Then the Emperor knew not what to do 
for joy. He offered his daughter to the 
soldier to wife, or, if he liked it better, the 
226 


THE DESERTER 


half of his kingdom. But the young man 
declined both offers and returned to his own 
ladies, where he married the youngest with 
the greatest festivities. As they came out 
of church to go to their house a new city 
sprang up all along the roadside. The 
hilarity was great. I myself was among the 
guests, and after I had made merry to my 
heart’s content I set out upon the way home 
to Varazdin. 

“ Did you ever live in Varazdin, grand¬ 
mother? ” asked the little boy. 

“No, surely not,” said the grandmother. 
“ That is just the way the story ends.” 

“ Oh! ” said the little boy. 


227 


CHAPTER XIX 


IN THE FIELDS 

S PRING was coming on finely, and 
everybody was at work in the fields 
—everybody, that is, who was not in the 
army. From every one of the wooden 
houses that stood on either side of the high¬ 
way, with their gable ends to the street, had 
gone a son, a husband, a laborer to the 
war that was waging so fiercely, no one 
quite knew where. The little boy’s married 
brother had gone to the nearest garrison 
town. He had barely had time to make the 
acquaintance of his little new-born daugh¬ 
ter when he was summoned. He went very 
willingly—all of them did. There was not 
a man in the village who did not adore the 
Emperor, who was not ready to die for him, 
though not one of them had ever seen him. 
228 


IN THE FIELDS 


So there were few men to work in the 
fields, and all the women and girls must go. 
This they were used to; it was so every year. 
The little boy’s mother was there, and his 
sisters, the eldest one wearing in her hair 
the flowers that showed that she was be¬ 
trothed. As far as one could see over the 
wide, treeless plain there were women and 
girls working, with only here and there a 
man who, like the starosta , was needed for 
the affairs of the village, or who, like the 
moujiks who looked after the sheep, were 
too old to go. 

The little boy was very proud when his 
father let him go to the field and help drop 
the seed into the furrows. He was thus 
at work when an old moujik came along 
and stood watching them. He was a very 
ragged old moujik , for he was very poor; 
but he was a polite old man, as all Russian 
peasants are, and when the little boy’s 
mother came along with her hoe, covering 
229 


IN THE FIELDS 


up the seed, he lifted his greasy old shapka 
to her with great courtesy. 

“ It’s a good thing that the little boy is 
at work,” said the old moujik. “ They can’t 
begin too early. There is much to do in 
God’s blessed world.” 

“ It is only for a little while,” said the 
mother. “ I shall send him to school soon.” 

“All, school, school!” said the old mou¬ 
jik , shaking his head. “ It only takes the 
children’s time when they ought to be at 
work; it costs money, and what good does 
it do? There were no schools in my 
time.” 

The little boy was tired when dinner-time 
came, and his mother left him at home with 
the grandmother. 

“ I have been working hard, little grand¬ 
ma,” he said. “ Don’t I deserve a story? ” 

“ Let me see,” said the grandmother, and 
there was a twinkle in her eyes. “ Did I 
ever tell you about 


230 


THE HUNTER 


“ THE HUNTER? ” 

“ No,” said the little boy; “ tell me that! ” 

Once upon a time there was a Hunter 
who had three dogs. The first he called 
“ Run-fast,” the second “ Catch-the-hare,” 
and the third “ I-know-it-better.” One day 
the Hunter went out to hunt, and he called 
his first dog, Run-fast, and his second dog, 
Catch-the-hare, and the third dog—what 
under the sun did I say was the third dog’s 
name? 

“I-know-it-better!” cried the little boy 
eagerly. 

“ Very well, then,” said the grandmother, 
laughing a little. “ If you know it better, 
tell the story yourself! ” 

“ O grandmother,” said the little boy 
after a moment of surprise, “ that’s not a 
story! ” 

“ Isn’t it? ” asked the grandmother. “ My 
231 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


great-grandmother said it was. Well, per¬ 
haps you will like better the story of 

“ THE WATCH-TOWER BETWEEN EARTH AND 
HEAVEN ” 

Once upon a time there was a King who 
had three sons and one daughter. He kept 
the daughter in a cage and guarded her as 
the eyes in his head. 

When the maiden was grown up she 
begged her father one evening to let her go 
out and take a walk before the castle with 
her brothers. The father consented, but 
hardly was she out of the door when sud¬ 
denly a Dragon came swooping down from 
the sky, seized the maiden from among her 
brothers, and carried her away with him 
high into the clouds. 

The brothers rushed headlong back to 
their father, told him of their misfortune, 
and begged permission to go and seek their 
stolen sister. The father consented, gave 
232 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


them each a horse and everything needful 
for a journey, and they set out. 

After many wanderings they came across 
a watch-tower which stood neither on earth 
nor in heaven. When they reached the 
place it occurred to them that their sister 
might be within, and they at once began to 
take counsel among themselves as to how 
they should reach it. 

After long consultation they decided to 
kill one of their horses, cut his skin into a 
long strap, fasten the end to an arrow, and 
shoot it up into some place in the watch- 
tower where it would hold securely. Then 
they could easily climb up. The two 
younger brothers asked the eldest to sacri¬ 
fice his horse, but he would not; nor would 
the second brother. So the youngest brother 
slew his horse, cut the hide into a long strap, 
bound one end to his arrow, and with his 
bow shot it up into the tower. 

But now, when it came to climbing up by 
233 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


the strap, the eldest and second brothers de¬ 
clined, whereupon the youngest undertook 
the adventure. Arriving at the tower, he 
went from room to room, until at last he 
came to one where he saw his sister sitting, 
with the Dragon’s head in her lap, the 
Dragon being fast asleep. 

When the sister perceived her brother she 
was greatly terrified, and softly entreated 
him to flee before the Dragon should awake. 
This he would not do, but seized his cudgel, 
struck out boldly, and dealt the Dragon a 
heavy blow upon the head. The Dragon, 
without awaking, put his hand up to the 
spot, murmuring, “ Something hit me right 
here.” 

As he said this the Prince fetched him a 
second blow upon the head, and again the 
Dragon murmured, “ Something hit me 
here.” But now, as the brother made ready 
to strike a third time, the sister made a sign 
showing the Dragon’s vulnerable spot, and 
234 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


the brother, giving a powerful blow, killed 
him as dead as a mouse. 

Then the Princess pushed him from her, 
flew into her brother’s arms, and smothered 
him with kisses. After this she took him by 
the hand and began to lead him through all 
the rooms. First she led him into a room 
in which a black fox, with a harness of pure 
silver, was standing before a manger. Then 
she led him into another room, where a white 
horse, with a harness of pure gold, stood 
before another manger. Finally she led 
him into a third room, where a brown horse 
stood before a manger, his harness all 
studded with diamonds. 

When they had gone through these 
rooms, the sister led her brother into a 
chamber where a maiden sat before a gold¬ 
en embroidery-frame, working with golden 
threads. From this room she led him into 
another, where a second maiden was spin¬ 
ning gold thread, and at last into a room 
235 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


where a third maiden was stringing pearls, 
while at her feet a golden hen, with a brood 
of chickens, was picking up pearls from a 
golden basin. 

When they had gone through all these 
rooms and seen all they wanted to see, they 
went back into the room where the dead 
Dragon lay, dragged him out, and threw him 
head-foremost down to the earth. When 
the other brothers saw him they were almost 
convulsed with terror. But now the young¬ 
est brother let down to them first their sis¬ 
ter and then the three maidens, one after 
another, each with her work. As he let 
them down he allotted one to each of his 
brothers, and when he let down the third, 
that is, the one with the hen and chickens, 
he reserved her to himself. 

But his brothers, filled with envy because 
he was the hero who had discovered all these 
things and rescued their sister, cut the strap 
to make it impossible for him to return. 

236 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


Then they rode away, and coming upon a 
shepherd-boy with his sheep, they dressed 
him like their brother and brought him home 
to their father, forbidding their sister and 
the maidens, with fearful threats, under any 
circumstances to reveal the secret. 

After a time word came to the youngest 
brother in the tower that his brothers and 
the shepherd were about to marry those 
three maidens. On the day appointed for 
the eldest brother’s wedding he mounted the 
white horse and flew down into the midst of 
the wedding-guests just as they were leav¬ 
ing the church, and struck his brother light¬ 
ly upon the back with his club. The brother 
fell from his horse, and the other flew back 
to his watch-tower. 

When the second brother’s wedding-day 
came he again flew down upon his steed, 
gave the second brother a blow upon the 
back, so that he fell from his horse, and 
again flew away. But when he at last heard 
237 


THE WATCH-TOWER 


that the shepherd was about to marry the 
third maiden he again mounted his steed, 
flew among the wedding-guests just as they 
were coming out of the church, and dealt 
the bridegroom such a blow upon the head 
with his club that the fellow lay dead upon 
the spot. 

In a trice the Prince was surrounded by 
the wedding-guests, who were determined 
that he should not escape this time. He 
made no attempt to do so, however, but re¬ 
mained where he was, made himself known 
as the King’s youngest son, revealed the 
trick his brothers had played upon him by 
means of the shepherd, and told how they 
had left him in the watch-tower where he 
had found his sister and killed the Dragon. 

His sister and the maidens bore witness 
to the truth of his story, and when the King 
heard all this he banished the two elder 
brothers from his presence, married the 
youngest to the maiden of his choice, and 
238 


THE BRIDGE 


decreed that he should be heir to the throne 
after his own decease. 

“ That is a real story, grandmother,” said 
the little boy. “ But it was not so very long. 
Couldn’t you tell me just one more? ” 

“If you will promise not to ask for an¬ 
other,” said the grandmother, “ I will tell 
you a short one. But you must not ask for 
another.” 

“ I promise,” said the little boy. 

Then she told him about 

THE BRIDGE 

Once upon a time there was a man who 
had a grown-up son. One day the old man 
said to his son, “ My dear son, you are now 
big and strong enough to earn your own 
living; so go out into the world and seek a 
place of service.” 

So the youth went out into the world and 
came to a large village, where he hired him- 
289 


THE BRIDGE 


self out as shepherd to a rich moujik. It 
was his duty to drive the sheep to pasture 
early every morning. The flock was enor¬ 
mously large and filled the whole valley. 
The pasture, however, was on the other side 
of a stream, and unluckily a storm had car¬ 
ried away the bridge the night before. Only 
a narrow plank remained, and this was so 
frail that but one sheep could cross at a time. 
There was nothing else for the shepherd to 
do, therefore, than to drive the sheep slowly, 
one by one, to the other side. 

Here the grandmother got up and went 
to the stove as if she had finished. 

“ But, grandmother,” said the little boy, 
“ what happened next? Tell the rest! ” 

The grandmother laughed. “Wait until 
the shepherd has driven all the sheep over 
the bridge.” 

“ Yes, but when will that be? ” asked the 
little boy. 


240 



Drive the sheep slowly, one by one, to the other side 















THE BRIDGE 


“ When there are no more left on this 
side,” said the grandmother. 

“ Was that one of your great-grand¬ 
mother’s stories? ” asked the little boy. 

“Yes,” said the grandmother. “ Don’t 
you like it? ” 

“ I like it a little—the first part of it,” 
said the little boy. “ But-” 

“Remember your promise!” said the 
grandmother. 


241 


CHAPTER XX 


TRINITY-MONDAY 

OU would hardly know the village. As 



A you looked down the street it would 
seem as if a forest of tall masts and poles 
had suddenly sprung up. Before every 
house they stood, two tall uprights—very, 
very tall—with a beam across the top, and 
from the beam two very long poles hang¬ 
ing, with a board connecting the lower ends. 
Yes, they were swings, but not swings like 
yours, for they were made of these long, 
long poles instead of ropes. 

The sun was hardly up when the little boy 
came out of the court and made a dash for 
the swing. There were boys and girls on 
every swing as far as you could see down 
the street, and in some of them were fathers 


242 


TRINITY-MONDAY 


and mothers, too, for Trinity-Monday is a 
great holiday, and no one works who is not 
obliged to. 

It was still very early. The hot mid¬ 
summer sun had hardly peeped above the 
distant hills. The little boy had a long, long 
day for swinging. 

In the swing next door were three chil¬ 
dren standing up, and their father with 
them, swinging very high and shouting joy¬ 
ously. The father, in a very loud, deep 
voice, would shout a long “ Boo-oo-oo-m! ” 
and then the children would cry, in their 
shrill treble, “ Hurra-a-a-r! ” with a long 
roll of the “ r.” All down the street they 
were “ boom ”-ing and “ hurra-a-a-r ”-ing; 
it was a beautiful noise. 

The sisters came running out, and after 
them the brother and the father. And what 
swing went so high as the little boy’s swing? 
And from before which house was there so 
deep a “ Boo-oo-oo-m! ” or so shrill and joy- 
243 


TRINITY-MONDAY 


ous a “ Hurra-a-a-r! ” ? The fun went on 
all day, the children visiting from swing to 
swing, and the fathers and mothers taking 
a turn now and again. What a joyful 
Trinity-Monday! 

The grandmothers did not swing. They 
sat in the house-doors with the babies of the 
young mothers or took their knitting and 
exchanged calls with one another. The long 
day seemed very short even to them. 

By the time sunset came the little boy 
was thoroughly tired out with delight. He 
came and lay down on the bench in the 
court where the grandmother was sitting. 
For once her hands were idle. She was 
thinking of her own swinging days, a long, 
long time ago. 

“ There is time for a story,” said the lit¬ 
tle boy, “ and you are doing nothing, little 
grandmamma.” 

The grandmother smiled indulgently and 
told him the story of 

244 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


SO BORN, SO DIE 

In olden times, when all the world be¬ 
lieved in Christianity, there lived in India 
a pious Christian. This man resolved to 
lead a hermit’s life; and, as he was wander¬ 
ing up and down through India, he found 
a great cave, where he took up his abode, 
that he might lead a life wholly pleasing to 
God. Thus passed away many years while 
he dwelt in the solitude of the wilderness, 
far from any living soul. 

One evening, when he had said his even¬ 
ing prayer and lain down upon his bed of 
moss, he thought in his heart, “ O Thou my 
God! I have already tarried many years in 
this solitude, and it has never been vouch¬ 
safed to me to convert a single soul to Thy 
holy faith. For in the many years which I 
have spent here I have seen no human being 
nor any living creature.” 

While thinking thus the Hermit stretched 
245 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


himself upon his bed and sweet sleep fell 
upon his eyelids. He awoke at daybreak, 
said his morning prayer, and then became 
aware of a little Mouse, which looked con¬ 
fidingly at him and glided toward him into 
the cave. 

Then said the Hermit, “ Praise and glory 
to Thee, O God, that I again look upon 
one of Thy creatures! ” 

Little by little there grew up between the 
Mouse and the Hermit such a warm friend¬ 
ship that the two were perfectly inseparable. 
The hoary Hermit derived the greatest joy 
from this friendship, and he constantly be¬ 
sought God to transform the little Mouse 
into a young girl, to be a daughter to him. 

His prayer was answered; the little 
Mouse became a fair young girl, and the 
old man felt at last that his life would not 
have been spent in vain, since it was vouch¬ 
safed to him to instruct this creature of God 
in the good and right way. 

246 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


So passed away the Hermit’s life in 
peace and piety until the young girl had 
attained the full bloom of maidenhood. 
Then thought the Hermit: 

“ I am already full of days; I have lived 
always to the glory of God, and the end of 
my life draws near. It would be a sin if 
this beautiful creature of God, who knows 
nothing of the world, should be left to grow 
old and wither away in this solitary vale. It 
would be better that she should marry.” 

Impelled by this thought, he called the 
maiden to him and said, “ My little daugh¬ 
ter, you are now grown up and old enough 
to be married. You ought also to see the 
world, for this pkice where we live is not 
the whole world. The world is large, and 
there are in it many beautiful creatures of 
God whom you have never seen.” 

The maiden answered, “ I thank you, my 
father; may your will be done in each and 
every thing. Only let me make one request, 
247 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


that you will find me a husband to my lik¬ 
ing, and, before all things, let him be that 
creature of God which is stronger than any 
other in the world.” 

The Hermit consented and set off upon 
his quest. In the course of his journey he 
met the Moon, and greeted him with, “ God 
be with thee, thou holy Moon, strongest of 
all God’s creatures! I have a daughter; 
take her for thy wife! ” 

The Moon answered, “ What foolish talk 
is this? I the strongest of God’s creatures! 
I shine in the night, but as soon as the Sun 
overtakes me he robs me of my light. Ad¬ 
dress yourself to the Sun; he is stronger 
than I.” 

The Hermit now betook himself to the 
Sun, and said, “ God be with thee, O strong 
and shining Sun! Thou art the strongest 
of all God’s creatures. I have a daughter; 
take her for thy wife! ” 

And the Sun replied, “ Thou errest in 
248 


SO BORN, SO DIE 

taking me for the strongest. The clouds are 
stronger and mightier than I, for when I 
shed abroad my rays then the clouds unroll 
themselves and veil my splendor. So they 
are stronger than I.” 

Then the Hermit sought a Cloud, and 
greeted him with, “ God be with thee! ” and 
said, “ Thou Cloud-man, strongest and 
mightiest of all God’s creatures, I have a 
daughter; take her for thy wife! ” 

And the Cloud-man answered, “ That 
cannot be, for the Wind is stronger than I. 
When I spread myself over the bright ex¬ 
panse of heaven, then comes the Wind and 
tears me into countless fragments. Go to 
the Wind; he is stronger than I.” 

The Hermit betook himself to the Wind, 
hailed him with, “ God be with thee! ” and 
said, “ Thou mightiest of all God’s creat¬ 
ures, strongest of all in the world, take my 
daughter for thy wife!” 

The Wind answered, “ Oh, old man, how 
249 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


should I be the strongest? When I begin 
to blow, the Mountain stands in my way, 
so that the people on its farther side know 
nothing about me. Go to the Mountain; he 
is stronger than I.” 

The old man went to the Mountain and 
said, “ God be with thee, thou rocky Moun¬ 
tain, strongest thing in the world! I have 
a daughter; take her for thy wife! ” 

“ Oho, old man! ” answered the Moun¬ 
tain, “ do you imagine that I am the strong¬ 
est in the world? Don’t you see me riddled 
all over by mice, who burrow in me night 
and day? Search for a Mouse, for he is 
stronger than I.” 

So the old man went to a Mouse, and said, 
“ Thou strongest of all God’s creatures, I 
have a daughter; take her for thy wife! ” 

“ I am not unwilling,” answered the 
Mouse, “ but I have not yet seen the maiden. 
Bring her here first, that I may see her; then 
will I wed her.” 


250 


SO BORN, SO DIE 

The old Hermit returned home and said, 
“ Well, my little daughter, I have found a 
husband for you; follow me! ” 

They presented themselves before the 
Mouse, and the old Hermit said, “ Here is 
thy wife.” 

“ Oho, what shall I do with her? ” asked 
the Mouse. “ She cannot even get into my 
little palace! ” 

But the maiden said to the old man, 
“ This shall be my husband; only pray to 
God to transform me again into a Mouse, 
that I may go with him.” 

The old Hermit, who saw no help for it, 
fell upon his knees and begged God to re¬ 
store his daughter to her former state. That 
very moment the maiden was changed into 
a Mouse and went with her husband. 

As for the old Hermit, he still lived on 
piously till the end of his days, convinced 
that every one must die with the same nature 
with which he was born. 

251 


SO BORN, SO DIE 


“ I should like to go to the sun, grand¬ 
mother/’ said the little boy. 

“ You would find it very hot,” said the 
grandmother. 

“ Did you ever go, little grandma? ” 
asked the little boy. 

“ No one goes nowadays,” said the grand¬ 
mother. 

“ They went in your great-grandmother’s 
time? ” ventured the little boy. 

“ Before her time, even,” said the grand¬ 
mother. “ Things are greatly changed since 
then.” 

The younger sisters had come in from 
swinging and were sitting on the other end 
of the bench. The eldest sister was walking 
with her betrothed in the lovely summer 
twilight. 

“No one ever went to the sun,” said one 
of the sisters. “ It is much too far off. I 
have learned it in school. And this world 
goes around it every day.” 

252 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


4 4 There were no schools in your great¬ 
grandmother’s time/’ replied the grand¬ 
mother, 44 and things were different then. 
The world did not move in those days; it 
rested on three great whales which were 
swimming in the ocean. My grandmother 
told me all about it.” 

The little boy pondered this fact for a 
while. Presently he said: 

44 One more story, little grandmother? ” 
It was still light, for twilight is very 
long in Russia. The grandmother told the 
story of 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 

An Emperor once had an only daughter 
of surpassing beauty. In his pride he 
caused it to be sounded abroad through all 
the world that the youth who should guess 
the position of a certain mole on the maid¬ 
en’s person should have her for his wife, and 
the half of his empire besides. But those 
253 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


who did not guess right should be trans¬ 
formed into lambs. 

This wonderful news spread over the 
whole world, so that wooers by thousands 
came from all lands to sue for the Princess’s 
hand. But all in vain. A countless number 
of them were changed into lambs. 

The news came also to the ears of a youth 
who was as poor as a church mouse, but who 
was as sharp as a needle for all that. His 
desire to possess the beautiful maiden and 
half the empire grew so strong that he de¬ 
cided to try his fortune; not, however, by 
suing at once for the maiden’s hand, but by 
seeing her first and asking her something. 

Arrived at the Emperor’s court, what 
wonders does he see! Lambs of all kinds 
pressed around him—God only knows how 
many there were. 

They swarmed about him, a pitiful sight 
and a warning example that might well 
turn him from his project. He would have 
254 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


gone back, but at the gate was a monster 
of a man, wrapped in a blood-red mantle, 
with wings, and an eye in the middle of his 
forehead, who cried out in a commanding 
voice, “Halt! Where are you going? Go 
back, or you are lost! ” 

So he went back and caused himself to be 
announced to the Emperor’s daughter, who 
was already waiting for him. She said to 
him, “ Did you come to get me for your 
wife? ” 

He answered, “No, Imperial Highness; 
but as I understood that you were thinking 
of marrying at the first favorable opportu¬ 
nity, I come to ask you if you need more 
bridal-clothes.” 

“ What kind of clothes have you to 
offer? ” she asked. 

He answered, “ I have a skirt of marble, 
a bodice of dew, a head-dress of threads 
made from the sun’s rays, with a clasp of 
the moon and stars; then I have shoes of 
255 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


pure gold which were neither sewed nor 
made by a smith. So, tell me, do you wish 
to buy these things or not? You have but 
to command, and I will bring them to you, 
but only on one condition. When you try 
these things on, piece by piece, there shall 
be no one present but only us two. If they 
fit we shall soon come to terms; if not, I 
will never offer them to another soul, but 
will lay them aside and keep them for my 
own bride.” 

The Princess agreed to this condition and 
gave him the order to bring the garments. 
And, really, he brought them to her. God 
only knows where he found them and how 
he came to possess them; it is enough for us 
to know that he kept his word. 

They shut themselves up in a room, and 
first she tried on the skirt, while he watched 
narrowly to see if by chance he could dis¬ 
cover the mole. To his joy he saw it under 
her right knee—a little golden star; but not 
256 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


the slightest change in his face betrayed his 
discovery. He only thought in his heart, 
“ It is well for me to-day and for all time! ” 

Then the Princess tried on the bodice and 
all the other things, and they fitted her as 
if she had been poured into them. They 
agreed as to the price; she paid it on the 
spot; he packed up his gold and departed. 

After a few days, having dressed him¬ 
self in the finest suit that could be bought 
for money, he came back to sue for the 
hand of the Emperor’s daughter. When 
he appeared before the Emperor he said, 
“ Worthy Emperor, I come to woo your 
daughter. Make no objections; give her to 
me! ” 

“ Good! ” answered the Emperor; “ but 
do you know how my daughter’s hand is 
won? Take good care, for if you do not 
guess the mole you are lost; but if you do 
guess it she will be yours, and the half of 
my empire into the bargain.” 

257 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


The youth bowed to the Emperor and 
said, “ My greetings, O Emperor and 
father-in-law! If that is the case she is 
mine. She has a little star under the right 
knee.” 

The Emperor was not a little surprised 
that he could know this, but there was noth¬ 
ing for it but to yield, and so the youth was 
married to the Princess. 

When the Emperor proceeded to give him 
the half of his empire the new-made son-in- 
law said to him, “ I willingly leave this half 
of your empire to you if you are ready to 
restore these poor souls to their former con¬ 
dition.” 

The Emperor answered that this was no 
longer in his power, but lay in the hands of 
his daughter, “ who now,” he added, “ is 
your wife.” 

So he turned to his wife with this request, 
and she answered: 

“ Cut the vein under the famous mole. 

258 


THE ENCHANTED LAMBS 


Let every lamb touch the end of its tongue 
to the blood and moisten its underlip with 
it, and they will all be changed to men and 
live as before.” 

He did as she directed, and when the 
lambs had all assumed the forms of men 
again they were invited as wedding-guests. 

Thus the youth took the maiden home 
amid song and chime of bells, and there he 
treated everybody royally to meat and drink, 
until finally they took their homeward way. 
But he stayed there with his young wife, 
and God knows what fortunes they met with 
in life that are all forgotten now. 

“ I am sorry you have forgotten any¬ 
thing, grandmother,” said the little boy. 
44 It is not dark yet, and I wanted a longer 
story.” 

44 It is not I who forgot,” answered the 
grandmother. “ I remember every word as 
it was told to me.” 


259 


THE KNOT-GRASS 


“ It must have been your great-grand¬ 
mother,” observed the little boy. “ I wish 
she had had a better memory.” 

“ I will tell you a short story to make up,” 
said the grandmother. “ It explains why 
there is so much knot-grass.” 

“ I should like to know that,” said one of 
the sisters. “ My fingers are tired rooting 
it out.” 

So the grandmother told about 

THE KNOT-GRASS 

Once upon a time an old hag got up early 
and went out among the mountains to 
gather all sorts of green herbs and practise 
her sorceries. 

About midday she set out upon her re¬ 
turn, and met some Knot-grass hastening to 
the mountains. 

“Hi! whither away?” asked the witch. 
“What bad luck sends you on this rough 
road? ” 


260 


THE KNOT-GRASS 


“ Upon my word, little mother, I can’t 
stand it down there any longer! Wherever 
the moujik digs or ploughs he does his best 
to root me out, tearing and clawing me with 
all his might. There is nothing left for me 
but to flee away and seek some quiet place 
where I can grow and spread in peace.” 

“ Go back to your home, little grass,” re¬ 
plied the old hag. “ Mark my words, the 
more they dig and hoe about a plant the bet¬ 
ter it thrives and the more it spreads. What 
does the proverb say? ‘Woe to the thing 
that never is harvested! ’ ” 

The Knot-grass turned about, and ever 
since that day it has been found in meadow 
and field, in vineyard and garden—every¬ 
where, indeed, where it is not wanted; and it 
is a hard matter to root it out. 


261 


CHAPTER XXI 


THRESHING-TIME 

I T was the joyous threshing-time. The 
summer’s work was over. The harvest 
had been good, and from all the fields the 
high-piled carts were bringing the sheaves 
to the threshing-floors. On these high levels 
busy flails were flying, making a quick music 
that chimed well with the sweet, melancholy 
threshing-song of the girls who were gather¬ 
ing the wind-swept grain into bags. When 
the threshing was all done the little boy’s 
eldest sister would be married, for autumn 
is the time for marriages, when vegetables 
and pork are plenty and there is money to 
buy brandy from the Jew. 

The grandmother had gone out with the 
little boy to see the threshing and to hear 
262 


THRESHING-TIME 


the threshing-song. She had sung that 
same song in her young days, and so had her 
great-grandmother before her. On the way 
back to the house a cow-herd woman met 
them—not their own, but that of a neigh¬ 
bor—and told them that her old master, the 
bolshak, or head of the family, was dead. 
The grandmother looked terror-stricken, 
and hastily exclaimed: 

“ May the Saviour's cross be with thee! " 

The cow-herd woman went on her way to 
spread the news. 

“ Why did you say that, grandmother? ” 
asked the little boy. 

“ To scare away the death angel," replied 
the grandmother. “ Never forget to say 
that when any one tells you of a death; 
otherwise it may come to your own house 
next." 

The grandmother seemed sad when she 
reached home. She had known the old man 
when she was a girl. He had been a stern 
263 


THE THREE EELS 


and severe bolshak in his family, keeping all 
his married sons at home and making them 
work hard for him, not at all like her son, 
the starosta, who was so kind to his children. 
Nevertheless, it made her sad that he was 
dead. She sat quiet, distaff and spindle 
lying idly in her lap. 

“ Grandmother,” said the little boy, 
“ would it comfort you to tell me a story? ” 

“ Indeed it would,” said the grandmother. 
“ Come now, sit on that stool and hold this 
yarn for me, and I will tell you about 

“ THE THREE EELS.” 

Once upon a time there was a fisherman 
who on three successive days made out to 
catch only an eel a day. When he found 
only one eel in his net on the third day he 
cried out angrily: 

“ What’s the use of fishing when one gets 
nothing more than one eel day after day? ” 

Immediately the tongue of one of the eels 
264 


THE THREE EELS 


was loosed, and he said, “ Wretched man, 
you little know what a precious catch you 
have had! You have fished up great good 
luck for yourself. Only now do as I advise 
you: Kill one of us three and divide him into 
four parts; give one piece to your wife to 
eat, the second to the mother-dog, the third 
to the mare, and bury the fourth in the 
ground just above your house. Soon your 
wife will bring twins into the world, the dog 
two pups, the mare two full-blooded stall¬ 
ions, and above your house will spring up 
two golden swords.” 

The fisherman followed the Eel’s advice, 
and indeed in the course of time everything 
happened as the Eel had predicted—his wife 
bore twins, the dog two pups, the mare two 
full-blooded stallions, and above his house 
two golden swords sprang up. 

When the sons grew large and had passed 
a certain number of years, one of them said 
to his father, “ Father, I perceive that you 
265 


THE THREE EELS 


are a poor man and cannot keep us any 
longer; so let me take a horse, a dog, and a 
sword, and go forth into the world. I am 
young and need experience; and where my 
head may rest, there also will my food be 
found.” 

When he had thus spoken he turned to 
his brother with the words, 44 Brother, God 
keep you! I go to seek my fortune. Do you 
stay at home, work, make, and save, and 
honor our father. Take this vial of water 
and give good heed to it, for if the water in 
it becomes dark it will be a sure sign that I 
have perished.” 

Thus he spoke and went to seek his 
fortune. 

In the course of his wanderings he came 
to a great city, where the King’s daughter 
saw him as he was taking a walk about the 
town. She at once fell desperately in love 
with him, and begged her father to invite 
him to the house. This he did. When the 
266 


THE THREE EELS 


youth entered the King’s apartments, and 
the maiden saw the sword, the dog, and the 
horse near by, she found everything on and 
about him so fine that it seemed to her noth¬ 
ing in the whole world could be finer. She 
fell more madly in love with him than ever, 
and said to her father, “ Father, I want to 
marry that youth! ” 

The King was very well pleased, the 
young man had nothing against it, so the 
bargain was concluded and the marriage 
celebrated according to form and custom. 

One evening, as the youth stood at the 
window with his wife, he noticed in the dis¬ 
tance a large mountain which was all a light 
blaze. He asked his wife what was the cause 
of this, and she answered, “ Oh, sir, do not 
ask me! That is a magic mountain that 
spits lightnings by day and at night stands 
wreathed in flames, and whoever goes there 
to see what is the matter is instantly struck 
dumb and remains enchanted on the spot.” 
267 


THE THREE EELS 


He paid no heed to her words, but mount¬ 
ed his horse, girded on his sword, called his 
dog, and rode to the mountain. When he 
reached it he met an old woman perched on 
a rock, holding in one hand a staff and in 
the other a little weed. As soon as he saw 
her he asked her why the mountain had these 
peculiarities, and she told him to ride along 
and he would soon find out. 

He did so, and the old woman conducted 
him to a court hedged in with the bones of 
heroes, and around in the court were count¬ 
less men standing stark and stiff, all en¬ 
chanted. He had hardly stepped into this 
court when he, too, as also his horse and his 
dog, grew rigid and changed to stone on 
the spot where they stood. 

At the same moment the water in the 
brother’s bottle at home grew dark, and the 
brother announced to the father and mother 
that his brother, their son, was dead and that 
he must go abroad and seek him. 

268 


THE THREE EELS 


So he travelled from place to place and 
from city to city, until luck took him to that 
very town and to the King’s palace. At 
sight of him the King rushed to his daugh¬ 
ter with the good news, “ Your husband has 
returned! ” 

She ran down to meet him, and thought 
he was her husband, for the two brothers 
were as much alike as the two halves of a 
cut apple. She thought it was the same 
horse, the same dog, and the same sword; 
and father and daughter rushed joyfully to 
meet him. They kissed and caressed him, 
the King thinking that it was his son-in- 
law, the daughter thinking that it was her 
husband. 

The youth was at first quite bewildered 
by these signs of affection, but it occurred 
to him that they were for his brother, and so 
he feigned to be her husband and the King’s 
son-in-law. 

When night came they retired, but he laid 
269 


THE THREE EELS 


his drawn sword in the bed between them. 
The woman wondered at this, but he said he 
could not sleep, and arose and went to the 
window. At sight of the magic mountain 
he said, “ Tell me, my dear little wife, why 
is that mountain in flames? ” 

“ For Heaven’s sake,” answered she, “ did 
I not tell you that other evening of the pe¬ 
culiarities of that mountain?” 

“What do you mean?” he asked her 
again, and she answered, “ Every one who 
goes there is enchanted and turned to stone. 
I was in great fear during your absence that 
you had gone there.” 

When he heard this he guessed the trouble, 
and in his anxiety he could hardly wait for 
daybreak. As soon as it was light he mount¬ 
ed his horse, girded on his sword, called to 
his dog, and rode to the mountain. When 
he saw the old woman he drew his sword 
from the scabbard, spurred on his horse, and 
set the dog upon her without saying a word. 

270 


THE THREE EELS 


The old woman fell back in a fury and 
called out to him not to cut her down. He 
answered, “ Then give me back my broth¬ 
er !” Hereupon the old woman led his 
brother out and restored to him speech and 
soul. 

When the brothers had greeted each 
other, and asked after each other’s health, 
they turned back homeward. But on the 
way the one who had been enchanted said, 
“ O brother, come! Let us turn back and 
deliver those men from perdition—those who 
are enchanted as I was.” 

No sooner said than done. They turn 
around, seize the old woman, snatch from 
her the little weed, and begin to strike the 
enchanted men with it, until by degrees all 
of them begin to speak and move. When 
all those enchanted ones had been called 
back into life they killed the old witch. The 
twin brothers went back to the King’s pal¬ 
ace and all the others to their houses. 

271 


THE THREE EELS 


I have heard a lie, I have told a lie, and 
God give you joy! 

“ Why do you say that, grandmother? ” 
asked the little boy. 

“ That is the way it ends,” said the grand¬ 
mother. 


272 


CHAPTER XXII 


THE KOROWAI 

T HERE were great doings in the little 
boy’s house. Grandmother was stand¬ 
ing at the long table beating up the dough 
of the korowai for the eldest sister’s wed¬ 
ding, for grandmother was greatly skilled 
in the making of wedding-cakes. No part 
of the wedding-feast is so important as the 
korowai, and the little boy watched with 
great interest as she mixed together the 
flour and eggs and lard, the molasses and 
fruit, the saffron and the savory seeds that 
go to make korowai. He was surprised and 
somewhat disappointed when, instead of put¬ 
ting it into the oven to bake, she spread a 
cloth over the great bowl and set it on a 
273 


THE KOROWAI 


chair by the stove. He was impatient to 
have it baked, it smelled so nice already! 

“ Aren’t you going to bake it, grand¬ 
mother? ” he asked. 

“ Not just yet,” she answered. “ It must 
rise first.” 

She went away to her room, giving strict 
injunctions to be called as soon as the dough 
was risen enough. 

The little boy did not follow her. Other 
things were being done in his mother’s room: 
vegetables and apples were being pared, 
pork roasted, sausages stuffed—it was very 
exciting. Some of the neighbor-women had 
come to help, and the little boy was under 
everybody’s feet at once. 

“ Run away, little boy,” said the mother; 
“ go ask grandmother to tell you a story.” 

Grandmother was quite ready. She was 
not spinning, she was only resting, for she 
had long been on her feet over the korowai . 
So everything was favorable for the story of 
274 


MORNING-DEW 


MORNING-DEW 

Once there were three brothers whose 
father gave each of them a loaf of bread 
and sent them to seek their fortune. When 
they were a good way from home, and be¬ 
gan to feel hungry, the two elder brothers 
said to the youngest, whom they had always 
taken for a simpleton, “ Let us first eat your 
bread, and then we will give you some of 
ours.” 

The youngest willingly shared his bread 
with them; but on the next day, when it was 
time to eat, the two brothers ate their bread 
comfortably without offering the other a 
single bit. 

4 4 Well, why don’t you give me a piece of 
bread, when you have eaten mine all up ? ” 
he asked, and received the answer: 

44 If you want to get anything from us 
you must let us put out your eyes, that we 
275 


MORNING-DEW 


may go around with you begging and so 
earn our bread.” 

What could the poor wretch do? He was 
tortured with hunger, so he allowed them to 
put out his eyes. But the brothers led him 
out among the high mountains, left him 
there in the lurch, and went on to seek their 
fortune. 

Now was the poor fellow neither to help 
nor to counsel. At last night closed in, and 
the Vilas came to dance in a ring, and one 
of them said, “ If that man should anoint 
his eyes with morning-dew he would see 
again that very moment.” 

He had hardly heard the words when he 
began to grope about in the grass for dew, 
and he rubbed it on his eyes and saw again. 
Then he filled a glass with this dew and went 
on to seek his fortune. 

On the way he stumbled across a Mouse 
which was staggering around, for the poor 
thing was blind. So he wet her eyes with 
276 


MORNING-DEW 


morning-dew and she at once received her 
sight. The little Mouse thanked him, say¬ 
ing, “ God reward you until I have an op¬ 
portunity to show my gratitude! ” 

A little farther on his way he came upon 
a Bee which was tumbling around and 
weeping bitterly, for it was blind. So he 
anointed the Bee’s eyes, too, and it immedi¬ 
ately regained its sight and thanked him, 
saying, “ God reward you until I have an 
opportunity to prove my gratitude! ” 

A little farther he found a Dove rolling 
around in the sand. He asked her, “ What 
is the matter that you tumble around so in 
the sand? ” And the Dove replied, “ Why 
do you tease me with questions when you 
cannot help me? ” But,the youth answered, 
“ Keep quiet a moment,” and he anointed 
her eyes. Immediately she saw again, and 
said, “ God reward you until I have an op¬ 
portunity to repay you! ” 

He now resumed his journey, and at last 

277 


MORNING-DEW 


arrived in a city where, as it happened, his 
two brothers were in service. Here he also 
was lucky enough to hire himself out as 
shepherd. 

The brothers recognized him, and one 
day, when he was out in the fields, they lied 
to their master, telling him that the shepherd 
had boasted that he was able to reap all 
the cuckoo-corn 1 in a single night. This 
pleased the master much, and he command¬ 
ed the youth to do this thing or it would cost 
him his head. 

Weeping, he went out and threw himself 
down upon the grass. Then came the little 
Mouse and comforted him, telling him to 
go to sleep and the work should all be done. 
And there came a great number of mice 
and gnawed down the whole crop of cuckoo- 
corn, so that when the youth awoke in the 
morning he found all done. And he showed 
it to the master, who was greatly pleased. 

1 Maize; Indian corn. 

278 


MORNING-DEW 


Then the brothers came to his master and 
accused him of having said that he could 
build a church in a single night. In the 
morning when he came home he was told 
that he must accomplish this work or it 
would cost him his head. So he threw him¬ 
self down again, weeping, in the grass. 

Then the Bee flew by and bade him go 
peacefully to sleep and she and her friends 
would do all the work without troubling 
him. And there came thousands of swarms 
of bees and built a church out of wax. It 
was still night when the master woke and 
saw a bright light over everything. He was 
frightened and called his body-servant to go 
with him into the church, which was already 
finished, even to the altars and everything 
else. 

Then the brothers told their master an¬ 
other lie—how the shepherd had said that he 
would give a string of pearls to the daugh¬ 
ter of the house, and that next morning the 
279 


MORNING-DEW 


master’s little son should play with a golden 
apple. When he came home he was told 
that he must do what he had boasted that he 
could do, on pain of death. 

Weeping, he threw himself down in the 
grass, when the Dove came flying to him 
and said, “ Dry your tears and go to rest; 
all shall be done.” In the morning the 
youth found a beautiful string of pearls 
and a golden apple by his side, and he gave 
them to his master’s daughter and little son. 

Then the master called the youth into his 
room and asked him how he had managed 
to do all these things. So the youth told 
him how his brothers had taken away his 
bread, put out his eyes, abandoned him in 
the mountains, and everything else that had 
happened. Then the master had the two 
brothers called into his presence and caused 
them to be beheaded. But the youth he re¬ 
warded and gave him his daughter to wife. 

Whoever believes this will be blessed. 

280 


MORNING-DEW 


“ The dough is rising, grandmother,” said 
the youngest sister, opening the door. 

Every one gathered around the grand¬ 
mother, for this was a ceremony of great 
importance. The future happiness of the 
young couple might depend upon it. 

First the grandmother took the dough 
out of the bowl, kneaded it a little, shaped 
it properly, and laid it in the baking-pan. 
The mother was standing by with five can¬ 
dles in her hand; the grandmother took them 
one by one, planted them in the centre and 
the four corners of the korowai, and lighted 
them. Then all the women stood around 
and began to sing. It was a somewhat sad 
tune, yet very sweet. The song had many 
verses; the first was to the young couple, 
who would be “ princess ” and “ prince ” for 
the next three days; the next was to the Vir¬ 
gin; then followed verses to the sun, the 
moon, the stars, and to a white stone beyond 
the seas. It was a long song, and by the 
281 


MORNING-DEW 


time it was finished the candles were burned 
down. Then the pan was carefully lifted 
into the oven. 

After that all was hurry and bustle. The 
room had to be swept, and long pieces of 
brightly striped cloth brought from the 
chest to cover the bench that ran around the 
whole room. The cloths were of the same 
colors as the brightly painted shelves above 
and they made the house very beautiful. 
There were wreaths to be made for the 
“ princess ” and the “ prince,” and the bride’s 
wedding-dress must be laid out carefully in 
the grandmother’s room, where nothing 
could harm it. 


282 


CHAPTER XXIII 


THE WEDDING 

N EXT morning was the wedding-day, 
and the bustle began bright and early, 
for the table must be spread with all the 
good things, and the korowai in the centre. 
Then every one put on his best clothes. 
The “ prince,” with as long a train of young 
men as the village could afford, came to the 
door to claim his bride. The “ princess ” 
came out of the grandmother’s room in her 
bridal-dress, a wreath of flowers on her head. 

Some one put a wreath on the head of 
the “ prince,” the procession was formed, 
and they went to church. There the pop 
preached a long sermon all about the duties 
of husband and wife, and said Mass, and 
283 


YOUNG NEVERFULL 


finally married the princess to her prince. 
In reality it was the little boy’s eldest sister 
who was married to her betrothed, but for 
the three days of the wedding they were as 
much prince and princess as if they had been 
born in an imperial palace. 

Then followed the feast. I can never tell 
you of the eating and the drinking, the 
songs that were sung and the jokes that 
went around the table. Late in the after¬ 
noon the little boy went into the grand¬ 
mother’s room. She had left the table an 
hour before. 

“ Grandmother,” he said, “ I have eaten 
too much. Please tell me a story.” 

“ It will be very appropriate,” said the 
grandmother, “ if I tell you about 

“ YOUNG NEVERFULL.” 

A certain housewife had a young servant- 
lad who devoured everything eatable that 
came in his way. He would rummage in 
284 


YOUNG NEYERFULL 


the storeroom until he smelled out some¬ 
thing good, and would give himself no rest 
until he had devoured it all. 

Now the woman had a jar of preserved 
fruit, and, as she feared that the youngster 
would eat it and leave her nothing to put 
into her pies, she said to him: 

“ My good boy, you have now eaten 
everything that I have except this jam, and 
you have left this just as if you knew that 
it was poisoned. See how good God is to 
have preserved you from it. One single 
spoonful is enough to kill one instantly; so 
I warn you not to touch it unless you want 
to die.” 

“ Very well,” answered the boy. 

On the next Sunday, as the woman was 
getting ready to go to Mass, she said to the 
boy, “ Cook the soup and boil the meat and 
roast this duck; we will have a good dinner 
to-day. See that you have all done and 
ready when I come home.” 

285 


YOUNG NEVERFULL 


“ Very well; it shall all be done,” answered 
the boy. 

When the woman was gone he cooked the 
soup and boiled the meat, and then he put 
the duck upon the spit to roast. When he 
saw what a delicious brown crisp was form¬ 
ing all over the duck, he thought, “ It can 
roast itself another one,” and ate the crisp 
all off. He turned the spit and turned it, 
but the second brown crisp never came. 

When he saw this, he thought, “ When 
the mistress comes home she will pepper me 
well,” and he began to consider how he 
could escape a beating. In his desperation 
he remembered the jar of poison against 
which his mistress had warned him the day 
before. With a sudden resolution he went 
into the storeroom and devoured the whole 
jarful of preserved fruit and then crouched 
down in a corner to wait for death. 

Presently his mistress came home and 
cried out angrily, “ What have you done to 
286 


YOUNG NEVERFULL 


this duck? ” She was about to belabor him 
well, when he cried, “ Ah, leave me in peace, 
dear mistress! I shall die in a minute any¬ 
way, for I have eaten up all the poison! ” 

At this the woman broke out into a laugh 
and could not refuse to forgive him. The 
duck and the preserves, however, were gone 
all the same. 

“ That was a greedy boy, grandmother,” 
said the little boy. “ Am I greedy because 
I ate too much at sister’s wedding-feast?” 

“ That was only grandmother’s little 
joke. It is not greedy to eat too much at 
a feast. Every one does,” said the grand¬ 
mother. 

A wedding-feast lasts three days, as 
every one in Russia knows, and during all 
that time there was eating and drinking 
going on in the little boy’s house, with much 
singing and many games, some of them 
287 


THE BASIE-PLANT 


pretty loud and boisterous. The second 
evening, when the fun had become pretty 
noisy, the little boy went to his grandmother 
for a story. She told him about 

THE BASIL-PLANT 

Once upon a time there was a woman to 
whom it was revealed in a dream that she 
must fast one day in every week, for if she 
neglected to do so she would give birth to 
something other than human. The woman 
obeyed the behest, but one day she forgot 
to fast, and not long after she gave birth to 
a wonderfully beautiful and fragrant bush 
which in this world is called basil. 

The woman watched and tended the bush, 
and the fame of it spread through the whole 
world, even to a distant country, where the 
son of an emperor heard of it and at once 
set out to see it. 

When he beheld the basil-plant he felt an 
extraordinary love for it, and he begged the 
288 





When he beheld the basil-plant he felt an extraordinary 
love for it 














THE BASIL-PLANT 


mother either to present it to him or else to 
sell it at a high price. But she would not 
hear a word of it, but sent him away, say¬ 
ing, “ It is not to be bought, even for one- 
half of your father’s kingdom.” 

Now the Prince’s servant, who overheard 
this, whispered to his master to say no more, 
and he would steal the plant for him. So 
said and so done. The servant managed 
somehow to steal the plant, and brought it 
to the Prince. The Prince, delighted to find 
his dearest wish gratified, richly rewarded 
the servant and locked the bush safely in a 
room. 

Some days after the Prince invited a 
great company to a feast, intending to take 
this opportunity to exhibit the basil-plant. 
The feast was ready, and the servants has¬ 
tened to announce it to the company; but 
when they went back there lay all the meats 
and pastries scattered in the dirt of the 
kitchen floor! 


289 


THE BASIE-PLANT 


When they saw this they hastened to tell 
the Prince, and as he saw no way of getting 
over the difficulty, nothing was left for him 
but to excuse himself to the guests for that 
day and invite them to return upon the 
morrow. 

The next day, when all was ready and the 
servants went to announce it, some one 
came again and threw all the food about 
the kitchen and broke all the dishes. The 
servants wondered at this no less than the 
Emperor’s son himself, and the Prince or¬ 
dered that a feast should again be prepared 
upon the third day and that some one should 
keep watch through the keyhole to discover 
the mischief-maker. 

When the meal was ready every one left 
the room and peeped through the keyhole 
to catch the culprit. Behold, what did they 
see? A golden-haired maiden! 

The attendants flew back into the kitchen, 
held the little culprit fast, and called to the 
290 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


Emperor’s son. As soon as he beheld the 
maiden he was beside himself with surprise 
and joy, and he asked her how she had come 
into the kitchen. 

At first she was terrified, but at last she 
confessed to him secretly that she was the 
basil-plant which he watched and tended so 
carefully, and which shed such sweet per¬ 
fume in his room; that she thought the feast 
was in honor of his wedding, and this 
had made her unhappy, for she had hoped 
that he would marry her and not another 
maiden. 

When the Prince heard these words and 
saw that the maiden was beautiful beyond 
all comparison, he was most happy, and as¬ 
sured the maiden that he would marry her 
as soon as she had embraced the Christian 
faith. She declared herself ready to do this 
without delay. 

In the meantime, however, the Prince’s 
time of service in the army arrived, and he 
291 


THE BASI L^PLANT 


was so much needed that he could by no 
means be permitted to absent himself. He 
therefore called his beloved to him before his 
departure and said to her: 

“ I must go to the army. With a bleeding 
heart I part from you; but, I pray you, 
change yourself again into a basil-plant and 
remain so until my return. Show yourself 
to no one, whoever it may be, who enters 
this room. And on my return, if God wills, 
I will ring this little bell, and then do you 
again take on your present form.” 

When he had once again kissed her she 
changed herself into a basil-plant, and he 
rode away. But two maidens who loved the 
Prince, and who of late had found them¬ 
selves neglected and forgotten, soon learned 
the cause of their sorrow—namely, that the 
Prince had chosen another maiden. There¬ 
fore they agreed to force their way into the 
Prince’s room and search for some token of 
her. 


292 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


When they were there they found noth¬ 
ing except his clothes and the basil-plant, 
and in it they saw nothing remarkable. 
They rummaged all around the room, try¬ 
ing to find some clew to the whereabouts of 
the maiden, and one of them in her restless¬ 
ness took the little bell in her hand and rang 
it. The sorrowing golden-haired maiden, 
believing that it was the Prince who rang 
the bell, immediately changed herself back 
into human shape and suddenly appeared 
between the two. 

At first they were all alike embarrassed, 
but the two trespassers soon perceived that 
they had found what they sought, and they 
seized the poor little creature, killed her, and 
carried her body into the mountains. In the 
evening the servant who had charge of 
bringing the maiden her supper found no 
basil-plant there, but in its place a horrible 
pool of blood. In a moment he saw the 
great danger of his position, and fearing the 
293 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


wrath of the Emperor’s son when he should 
return home, he fled away with all speed. 

But to return to the maiden. An old 
woman who was going along among the 
mountains found the headless body and the 
head lying near, and, feeling compassion 
for the young creature, she gathered certain 
herbs with which she called the maiden back 
to life. When the poor child again awoke 
to life and found herself in the depths of 
the mountains, she fell upon the old woman’s 
neck and promised that she would never 
abandon her. 

But the old woman answered, “ My dear 
little daughter, go, in God’s name, wherever 
you like! I, a poor old worn-out woman, 
can hardly support myself, to say nothing 
of you. But you are young and strong, 
and, with God’s help, will get on nicely.” 

But the maiden answered her, “ Neither 
now nor ever, so long as God lives in heaven! 
You have called me back to life, and it is 
294 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


my debt and duty to love you till death. 
We shall surely make our way in the world. 
I will sell my golden hair, and will buy food 
for you; and when my hair is all sold I will 
gather herbs in the mountains and feed 
you.” 

At last the old woman consented, and a 
few days later the maiden cut off a lock of 
her golden hair and sent the old woman with 
it to market, bidding her not to sell it for 
less than a hundred ducats. The old woman 
went straight to the very city where the 
Prince lived, for he had returned from camp 
and had ordered the whole city to go into 
mourning because of his lost love. 

Fortunately the old woman met the 
Prince and asked him if he would like to 
buy a lock of golden hair. The moment the 
Prince saw the lock he was beside himself 
with surprise, for he perceived at once that 
it was his beloved’s hair. So he seized hold 
of the old woman and asked her how she 
295 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


came by it The old woman, terrified, con¬ 
fessed the whole. 

Upon this he quickly mounted his horse, 
placed the old woman upon another, and 
they rode to the village where the old wom¬ 
an lived. When they arrived they found 
the maiden bathed in tears, bewailing her 
lost lover. He rushed to her, they kissed 
and embraced, and then went home, taking 
the old woman with them. 

When the Emperor’s son had heard the 
details of the whole story he commanded the 
two maidens to be put to death. Then he 
married his own love. The old woman he 
honored as his own mother, and when she 
died he gave her an imperial funeral. 

“ That is a beautiful story, grandmother,” 
said the little boy, “ although there is not a 
Dragon nor a Fox nor a Mouse in it. There 
is a plant, though. I wish one of the plants 
in our field would turn into a golden-haired 
296 


THE BASIL-PLANT 


maiden—a very little one, big enough to 
play with me.” 

“Wait till the little baby in your broth¬ 
er’s house grows bigger,” said the grand¬ 
mother. “ It will not be long.” 


297 


CHAPTER XXIV 


AFTER THE WEDDING 

T HE third evening of the wedding-feast 
had come, and with music and singing 
the whole village escorted the young couple 
to their house. They were to have a house 
of their own, and not live with the bride¬ 
groom’s father, for so had the starosta in¬ 
sisted. Now they were there at last, and 
though some of the young men remained in 
the streets singing noisily, the bride’s family 
went quietly home. 

“ It seems lonely without our princess,” 
said the starosta as they gathered around 
the stove. “ Grandmother, I know the little 
boy is hoping for a story. Let us all hear 
it. Tell one of your very best ones, that we 
298 


STEELPACHA 


may forget for a time that our family circle 
is smaller.” 

The grandmother, with great willingness, 
told the story of 

STEELPACHA 

Once upon a time there was an Emperor 
who had three sons and three daughters. 
As he was very old, his last hour drew nigh. 
He therefore called his children to his bed¬ 
side and laid earnest command upon his sons 
to give their sisters, without hesitation, to 
the first suitors who asked for them in mar¬ 
riage. “ Marry them off,” he said to the 
sons, “ or my curse will be upon you!” 
These were his last words. 

After his death, day passed quietly after 
day for a while. Then one evening there 
came a loud knocking at the door. The 
whole palace began to rock amid a wild roar¬ 
ing, howling, crashing, flashing; the castle 
was bathed in a sea of flame. Every heart 
299 


STEELPACHA 


was terrified, and trembling took possession 
of every soul. 

Suddenly a voice cried, “ Open the door, 
ye princes! ” 

Up spoke the Emperor’s eldest son, “ Do 
not open! ” And the second said, “ On no 
account open!” But the youngest said, 
“ Then I will open the door myself! ” 

He sprang up and drew the bolts. 
Hardly was the door opened when a fearful 
Being rushed in, the outline of whose form 
was hidden in encircling flames. 

“ I am come,” he exclaimed, “ to take 
your eldest sister for my wife, and that at 
once. So give a short answer—yes or no; 
I insist upon it! ” 

Said the eldest brother, “ I will not give 
her to you. Why should I, when I know 
neither who nor whence you are? You come 
here by night, demand my sister’s hand upon 
the instant, and I do not even hear which 
way I am to turn when I wish to visit her.” 

300 


STEELPACHA 


Said the second brother, “ Nor do I per¬ 
mit you to take away my sister thus in the 
dead of night.” 

But the youngest interposed, “ Then I 
will give her away if you two refuse. Have 
you already forgotten our father’s com¬ 
mand ? ” And taking his sister by the hand 
he gave her to the stranger, saying, “ May 
she live happily with you and be ever 
faithful! ” 

As the sister crossed the threshold every 
one in the building fell to the ground in 
fear and horror. It lightened, it thundered, 
it crashed, it quaked, the whole fortress 
swayed heavily, as if heaven and earth were 
falling together. Gradually the uproar 
died away, and the rosy eastern light an¬ 
nounced the coming morning. 

As soon as day had broken the brothers 
searched for the traces which they supposed 
would have been left by their tremendous 
nocturnal visitor; but not a trace, not a foot- 
301 


STEELPACHA 


print had he left behind. All was swept 
away. 

On the following night, at the self-same 
hour, the self-same flashing, crashing din 
was heard around the imperial fortress, and 
a voice without cried loudly, “ Open the 
door, you princes! ” 

Paralyzed with terror, they threw open 
the door and a fearful Form rushed in, cry¬ 
ing in a loud voice, “ Give me here the maid¬ 
en, your second sister! We have come to 
marry her! ” 

Said the eldest brother, “ I will not give 
you my sister! ” 

Said the second, “ I will not let my sis¬ 
ter-” 

But the youngest broke in with, “ Then 
I will! Will you never remember what our 
father commanded? ” 

He took his sister by the hand and led her 
to the wooer. “ Take her; she will be happy 
with you and always good.” 



STEELPACHA 


At this the powerful apparition vanished, 
and the maiden with him. 

As soon as morning dawned the brothers 
sought around the castle for traces of the 
direction which the apparition had taken; 
but they found nothing under the blessed 
sun, nor was there the slightest clew from 
which they could make any sort of guess any 
more than if no one had been there! 

On the third night, at the same hour, the 
whole castle was again shaken to the foun¬ 
dation by a horrible uproar and earthquake, 
and a voice called out, “ Open the door, ye 
princes! ” 

The Emperor’s sons sprang nimbly to 
their feet and drew the bolts, upon which a 
monstrous Form entered, exclaiming, “We 
are come to demand the hand of your young¬ 
est sister! ” 

“ Never! ” shrieked the eldest and second 
brothers with one voice. “ We will not let 
this one go away thus by night. Surely we 
303 



STEELPACHA 


must at least know of this our youngest sis¬ 
ter whom she marries and where she goes, 
that we may be able to visit her! ” 

But up spoke the youngest brother, 
“ Then I will give her away if you refuse. 
Have you quite forgotten what our father 
charged us on his dying bed? It is not so 
long ago.” 

He took the sister by the hand and said, 
“ Here she is; take her home and live hap¬ 
pily and joyfully with her! ” 

In a twinkling the terrible Being disap¬ 
peared in the midst of a fearful uproar. 

When the morning dawned the brothers 
felt oppressed by anxiety, being all uncer¬ 
tain as to the fate of their sisters. After a 
long interval, during which no light had 
been thrown upon this matter, the three 
brothers took counsel together: 

“ Good heavens, did ever one know of 
anything so mysterious! What has become 
of our sisters? For we have not the least 
304 


STEELPACHA 


idea of their abiding-place, nor any clew 
which can lead to their discovery.” 

At length one said to the others, “ Let us 
go forth to seek our sisters.” 

So the three brothers made ready without 
losing a moment. They took money enough 
for a long journey and went out into the 
wide world to seek their sisters. 

In the course of their wanderings they 
lost their way among the mountains, where 
they wandered for a whole day. When 
night fell they decided, on account of their 
horses, to encamp for the night near a piece 
of water. 

And so they did. They reached the shore 
of a lake, pitched their tents, and sat down 
to supper. When they lay down to sleep 
the eldest brother said, “ You may sleep, but 
I will stand guard.” 

So the two younger brothers went peace¬ 
fully to sleep, while the eldest brother kept 
watch. At a certain hour of the night the 
305 


STEELPACHA 


lake became agitated with a swaying mo¬ 
tion which startled the watcher not a little. 
He soon observed a shapeless form arising 
out of the midst of the water and rushing 
straight toward him. It was a frightful 
monster of a Dragon, with two great flap¬ 
ping ears, which was rushing so fiercely 
upon him. The Prince bravely drew his 
sword and, seizing the Dragon, cut off his 
head. Then he sliced off the ears and put 
them into his wallet, and threw the head and 
the body back into the lake. 

Meantime the day had dawned, and the 
brothers still lay in profound slumber, little 
dreaming of their eldest brother’s heroic ex¬ 
ploit. Pie now awaked them, but said not 
a syllable about his nocturnal adventure. 
They left that place and continued their 
journey, and when twilight began to fall 
they once more agreed to seek a halting- 
place near some piece of water. But they 
were much terrified to find themselves quite 
306 


STEELPACHA 


lost in a lonely wilderness. At last, how¬ 
ever, they came upon a tiny lake, where they 
decided to spend the night. They kindled 
a fire, unpacked cooking utensils and food, 
and took their evening meal. After that 
they disposed themselves to sleep. Then 
said the second brother, “ Do you two go to 
rest; I will mount guard to-night.” 

The two brothers therefore lay down to 
sleep, but the third cheerfully sat up and 
kept watch. Suddenly a rustling sound 
from the lake met his ears, and he saw a 
sight which curdled the blood in his veins. 
A two-headed Dragon rushed tumultuously 
upon the brothers as if to annihilate them 
all three. 

Quick as thought the watcher sprang up, 
drew his glittering sword, avoided the Drag¬ 
on’s attack, and cut off his two heads. Then 
he sliced off the ears and put them into his 
wallet, throwing the other parts of the mon¬ 
ster back into the lake. His brothers knew 
307 


STEELPACHA 


nothing of the affair, for both slept soundly 
until dawn. 

When day broke the second brother called 
to them, “ Wake up, brothers, the morning 
dawns! ” 

Immediately they sprang up, packed 
their goods, and set forth upon their way; 
but they had not the least idea where they 
were nor in what country. 

A great fear overwhelmed them that they 
might perish of hunger in this wilderness, 
and they besought God to guide them, at 
least, to some inhabited village or city, or to 
permit them to meet some human being, for 
they had already wandered three days in 
this inhospitable wilderness without coming 
to the end or finding any way out. 

It was rather early in the day when they 
came to a pretty large lake and decided to 
go no farther, but to make their camp on 
this lake-side. For they said, “ If we go 
farther we shall very probably not find 
308 


STEELPACHA 


any more water near which to make our 
camp.” 

They remained, therefore, in this place, 
built a great fire, supped, and made ready 
to sleep. Then said the youngest brother: 

“ Do you two go to rest. I will take the 
watch to-night.” 

So the two lay down and soon fell asleep, 
but the youngest brother kept a sharp look¬ 
out, and often threw a glance over the shin¬ 
ing surface of the lake. 

Thus passed away a portion of the night, 
when suddenly the lake boiled up, surged, 
foaming, upon the fire and half-extin¬ 
guished it. But the watcher whipped out 
his sword and took his position close to 
the fire. Suddenly a three-headed Dragon 
rushed forth and made as if to kill the 
brothers. 

Now was the hero-spirit of the youth 
tested. He waked not his brothers, but 
went forth alone to meet the Dragon. Three 
309 


STEELPACHA 


times he raised his sword, and each time he 
smote off one of the monster’s heads. Then 
he sliced off the ears, and threw the shape¬ 
less remains into the w r ater. 

While this tremendous conflict was going 
on the fire died out, having been flooded by 
the water. The Prince would not awake his 
brothers, although he had no tinder-box of 
his own to rekindle it with, but resolved to 
search around a little in the wilderness in 
hope of stumbling upon some one who could 
help him. 

But nowhere was there a mortal soul! At 
last he climbed into a high tree and looked 
around in all directions to see what he might 
see. 

As he was thus gazing far and wide his 
eyes were suddenly attracted by a flash of 
light which seemed to be very near him. He 
descended the tree and went in the direction 
of the light, hoping to get some fire where¬ 
with to rekindle the fire for his brothers. 

310 


STEELPACHA 


He went on for a long stretch, the light 
seeming always to be just before him, when 
suddenly he found himself standing before 
a cave in a rock in which nine Giants, gath¬ 
ered around an immense fire, were roasting 
two men upon a spit, one on one side of the 
fire, the other on the other. An enormous 
copper caldron, full to the brim with hu¬ 
man flesh, was bubbling over the fire. 

The imperial Prince was horrified at this 
sight. He would have turned back, but 
whither should he go? Where was there a 
way of escape for him? He quickly recov¬ 
ered his self-possession, however, and cried 
out, “ Good-morning, valiant comrades! I 
have long been seeking you! ” 

They received him most cordially, answer¬ 
ing, “ God be with thee, if thou art a true 
comrade.” 

He replied, “ Indeed I am, and shall be 
all my life long. I would risk my head for 
you.” 


311 


STEELPACHA 


“ All right,” they answered. “ If you 
wish to be one of us, are you ready to eat 
human flesh and take a share in our ad¬ 
ventures? ” 

“Yes, that I will,” said the Prince. 
“ What you do, that will I do also.” 

“ Faith, then all is well! ” they said. “ Sit 
down among us.” 

They settled themselves around the fire. 
The caldron was taken off, its contents 
served, and the meal began. The Prince re¬ 
ceived his share, but he knew how to man¬ 
age, and, instead of eating, he slyly threw 
the meat, bit by bit, behind him. He did the 
same with the roast. Then the Giants said: 

“ Come, now, we must go a-hunting, for 
we must eat to-morrow as well as to-day.” 

So the nine Giants set out, with the Prince 
for a tenth. 

“ Come,” they said to him, “ not far from 
here is a town in which reigns an Emperor. 
His city has fed us for several years.” 

312 


STEELPACHA 


As they drew near to the city they pulled 
up two fir-trees by the roots and carried 
them along. When they reached the town 
they set one of the trees against the wall 
and called to the Prince, “ Come on, climb 
up the wall here, and we will hand you the 
second tree. Seize it by the point and let it 
down on the other side, but keep hold of the 
top so that we may climb down by the 
trunk.” 

The Prince accordingly scrambled up, but 
on receiving the second tree he called out, 
“ I don’t know where to stand it; I am not 
familiar with the place and dare not shove 
it over. Do one of you come up and show 
me, and then I will make it all right.” 

One of the Giants climbed up to him, 
seized the fir-tree by the point, and let it 
down on the other side of the wall. As he 
stood thus bent over, the Prince drew his 
sword and struck off his head, and the dead 
Giant tumbled off the wall into the city. 

313 


STEELPACHA 


Then the Prince cried to the others, “ All 
right! Come on now, one at a time, that I 
may help you along in the same way.” 

One after another unsuspiciously climbed 
up, only to meet death at the hands of the 
Prince. When he had made an end of all 
the nine he let himself down by the fir-tree 
into the city, which he explored in every di¬ 
rection. No sound of human voice reached 
his ear. All was a drear, horrible desola¬ 
tion. “ Has the whole population been 
robbed and murdered by the Giants? ” he 
thought to himself. 

For a long time he wandered about the 
desolate city, until he came to a very high 
tower, from one window of which shone out 
the light of a taper. He threw open the 
door, rushed up the tower stair, and hastened 
straight to that room. 

On the threshold he stood still in amaze¬ 
ment. The room was richly hung and deco¬ 
rated with gold, silk, and velvet, and not a 
314 


STEELPACHA 


soul within except a maiden who lay upon 
a couch, outstretched in deep slumber. The 
Prince was rooted to the spot at the sight of 
the maiden, for she was wonderfully beau¬ 
tiful. But at that moment he became aware 
of a great serpent which, gliding along the 
wall, stretched out its head directly over the 
head of the maiden, coiling itself up in 
readiness to spring and strike her upon the 
brow, between the eyes. 

Then the Prince sprang quickly with his 
pocket-knife, which in a trice he had drawn 
from his pocket, and pinned the serpent’s 
head to the wall. Then saying these words, 
44 God grant that no hand but mine may 
draw this knife out from the wall,” he went 
quickly away. He climbed up by one fir- 
tree and down by the other, and so got over 
the wall. Arrived at the Giants’ cave, he 
took some fire and ran back to his brothers, 
who were still buried in profound slumber. 
As he kindled the fire day began to dawn in 
315 


STEELPACHA 


the east. He awakened his brothers, and 
they set forth upon their journey. 

That same day they came to the highway 
leading to the before-mentioned city. A 
mighty Emperor reigned there who used to 
go about the city every morning shedding 
bitter tears because his people were exter¬ 
minated and eaten by the giants, and be¬ 
cause of his constant fear that his only 
daughter would fall a sacrifice to their glut¬ 
tony. On this morning he was going about 
the city as usual. It lay empty and de¬ 
serted; the inhabitants had dwindled away 
to a mere remnant; most of them had found 
a grave in the giants’ maws. 

As I have said, the Emperor was thus re¬ 
viewing his city when suddenly his eyes fell 
upon the uprooted fir-tree which still leaned 
against the wall, and as he drew nearer he 
beheld a wonderful sight: there lay the nine 
Giants, the very pests of the city, with their 
heads all cut off! 


316 


STEELPACHA 


This sight gave the King unspeakable 
joy. The people also gathered together to 
pray God that blessing and happiness might 
descend upon the giant-slayer. At that very 
moment a servant came from the imperial 
citadel to say that a serpent had nearly been 
the death of the Emperors daughter. Upon 
this the Emperor betook himself straightway 
to the citadel, and to the very chamber of 
his daughter. Arrived there, he saw upon 
the wall the impaled serpent, and tried with 
his own hand to draw out the knife, but in 
vain. 

Then the Emperor sent a proclamation 
through his whole empire: “ Whoever has 
slain the giants and impaled the serpent, let 
him make himself known, that the Emperor 
may richly reward him and bestow upon him 
the hand of his daughter.” 

This proclamation was issued in every 
province of the empire. The Emperor also 
gave command that great inns should be 
317 


STEELPACHA 


erected upon the principal highways, where 
all travellers should be stopped and asked 
whether they knew who had overcome the 
giants; and whoever should discover the 
man, let him hasten with utmost speed to 
the Emperor to receive a rich reward. 

According to the imperial proclamation, 
great inns were erected upon the principal 
highways, and every traveller stopped, ex¬ 
amined, and the whole affair explained to 
him. 

After a while the three Princes who were 
seeking their sisters came to pass the night 
at one of these inns. After supper the land¬ 
lord joined the company and began to boast 
of his wonderful exploits. At last he turned 
to the three brothers with the question, 
“ And what doughty deeds have you done 
up to this time? ” 

Then the eldest brother began, “ As I and 
my brothers were upon our travels it came 
to pass one night that we made our halt on 
318 


STEELPACHA 


the border of a lake in a great wilderness. 
While my brothers were asleep and I keep¬ 
ing watch, a Dragon came up out of the lake 
to destroy me. I drew my sword out of the 
scabbard and struck off his head. If you 
don’t believe me, here are his ears.” And 
he drew the ears out of his wallet and threw 
them upon the table. 

When the second brother heard this, he 
began, “ I had the watch on the second 
night, and I killed a two-headed Dragon. 
If you don’t believe me, here are the ears 
which I cut from his two heads for a wit¬ 
ness.” He said it and showed the two pairs 
of ears. 

The youngest brother heard the whole in 
silence. The landlord now turned to him. 

“ By Heaven, youngster, your brothers 
are valiant heroes! Come, let us hear if you 
can also boast of any doughty deeds! ” 

Hesitatingly the youngest began his 
story: “Well, I also did a trifle. It was 
319 


STEELPACHA 


on the very third night, beside the lake in 
the wilderness. You, my brothers, were 
asleep. I kept watch. At a certain hour 
of the night the lake surged up and a three¬ 
headed Dragon arose from it, who would 
have annihilated us. Then I drew a sword 
and cut off all three of his heads. If you 
don’t believe it, here are the three pairs of 
ears! ” 

Upon this the two brothers were dumb 
with astonishment. But the youngest went 
on with his story: “ In the meantime the 
fire had gone out, and I went forth to seek 
a light. While straying around among the 
hills I stumbled upon nine giants in a cave; ” 
and so he went on and told all his adventures 
in order, and every one was struck with 
amazement at the wonderful tale. 

No sooner had the landlord heard the 
story than he ran secretly to the Emperor 
and told him the whole affair. The Em¬ 
peror gave him a great sum of money, and 
320 


STEELPACHA 


sent his people at once to bring the three 
princes before him. 

When they came into the emperor’s pres¬ 
ence he put the following question to the 
youngest: “Is it you who performed the 
wonders in our city, killing the giants and 
saving my only daughter from destruction? ” 

“ Yes, it was I, mighty Emperor,” replied 
the Prince. Hereupon the Emperor mar¬ 
ried his daughter to the young Prince and 
raised him to the highest office in the king¬ 
dom. 

Then the Emperor said to the two elder 
brothers, “If it please you to remain in my 
empire, I will give you each a wife and will 
permit you to build strongholds for your¬ 
selves.” 

But they told him they were already mar¬ 
ried, and explained that they had undertaken 
this journey merely to seek out their sisters. 
When the Emperor heard this he detained 
only the youngest brother, his son-in-law, 
321 


STEELPACHA 


and to the two other brothers he gave two 
mules laden with gold. So the two brothers 
returned home to their own kingdom. 

Still the youngest brother thought con¬ 
tinually of his sisters, and kept always in 
mind the hope of yet seeking them out. 
But on the other hand he was pained at 
the thought of parting from his young wife, 
and besides he knew that the Emperor would 
never consent to his leaving him. So he was 
continually racked with anxiety about his 
sisters. 

One day the Emperor went hunting, and 
before setting out he said to his son-in-law, 
“ Do you remain in the castle during my 
absence. I give to you nine keys which you 
must keep carefully by you. I give you free 
leave to open three or four rooms. You will 
find in them silver and gold in abundance; 
there is also no lack of weapons, or of any 
kind of treasure. You may even, if you feel 
inclined, open eight of the rooms. But be- 
322 


STEELPACHA 


ware of unlocking the ninth. Leave that one 
alone; for,” he added, “ if you do not it will 
be the worse for you.” Upon this the Em¬ 
peror departed, leaving his son-in-law at 
home alone. 

Hardly was the Emperor gone when the 
Prince began to open one door after another, 
until he had examined eight rooms in suc¬ 
cession. His eyes beheld in them treasures 
of all kinds. When at last he came to the 
door of the ninth room he said to himself, 
“ I have seen and done so many wonderful 
things, and shall it be forbidden me to enter 
a certain room? ” 

So he unlocked the door and went in. 
What a sight! There was a man whose 
legs up to his knees and whose arms up to 
the elbows were incased in iron; from his 
neck hung heavy iron chains, the ends of 
which were fastened to stakes driven into 
the floor on all sides, holding him so securely 
that he could not stir. Before him a stream 
323 


STEELPACHA 


of water gushed from a golden vessel and 
flowed into a golden basin which stood near; 
beside it was a golden jug, beautifully 
adorned with jewels. The man longed to 
drink the water, but he could not reach the 

jug. 

When the imperial Prince saw this he 
started backward; but the fettered man 
cried, “ Oh, come to me, I beseech you, in 
the name of the living God! ” 

The Prince drew nearer, and the man con¬ 
tinued, “ Oh, do a pious act; let me drain a 
jug of water! Be assured I will reward you 
for it with an additional life.” 

The Prince considered the proposition. 
“ Can there be anything better for me than 
to secure for myself an additional life? ” 
He took the jug, filled it, and raised it to 
the man’s lips, who emptied it at a sin¬ 
gle draught. Upon this the Prince asked 
him, “ In the name of Heaven, who are 
you? ” 


324 


STEELPACHA 


The man answered, “ My name is Steel- 
pacha.” 

The Prince now turned toward the door, 
but the man implored him, “ Give me an¬ 
other jug of water, and I will give you a 
second life.” 

The Prince thought, “ He will give me a 
second life; I have one into the bargain. 
This will be a prodigy indeed! ” and he filled 
the jug again and put it to the man’s lips. 

He then turned away, and already held 
the door-latch in his hand when Steelpacha 
called to him, “ O sir, come back to me! 
You have twice acted nobly by me; prove 
yourself a man a third time and I will give 
you a third life. Take this jug, fill it to the 
brim, and pour it over my head; and for 
this labor of love I will give you a third 
life.” 

When the Prince heard this he turned 
back, took the jug, filled it with water, and 
poured it over the man’s head. The moment 
325 


STEELPACHA 


the water touched him the chains about his 
neck fell asunder and all the bonds which 
held him were unloosed. Quick as light¬ 
ning Steelpacha sprang up, spread a pair 
of wings, flew out of the window, snatched 
up the Princess, the wife of his deliverer, 
took flight with her under his wing, and 
in a moment had disappeared from view. 
That was a prodigy indeed! 

The Prince now looked forward with 
deepest dread to the Emperor’s return. 
However, when the Emperor came home, 
the Prince told the whole story exactly as 
it had happened. The Emperor was beside 
himself with grief. “ Why did you do 
thus? ” said he reproachfully. “ Did I not 
expressly forbid you to enter the ninth 
room? ” 

The Prince answered soothingly, “ Don’t 
be angry with me. I will go at once to seek 
Steelpacha and rescue my wife from him.” 

The Emperor tried to dissuade him from 
326 


STEELPACHA 


this plan. “ Don’t do that,” said he; “ you 
shall on no account move a step from this 
place. You have no idea who Steelpacha is. 
Many an army and much treasure did I 
waste before I got him in my power. So 
remain quietly with me. I will provide an¬ 
other wife for you. And don’t be unhappy; 
I love you as my own son.” 

But the Prince was deaf to all these per¬ 
suasions, and adhered to his first resolution. 
He provided himself with the necessary 
money, mounted his horse, and went forth 
into the world to seek Steelpacha. For a 
long time he wandered about, and at last he 
arrived at a city. He was gazing around 
with some curiosity, when suddenly a woman 
called to him from a balcony, “ You Prince, 
get down from your horse and come into the 
court! ” 

As the Prince entered the court the woman 
came to meet him. He looked narrowly at 
her and recognized his eldest sister. They 
327 


STEELPACHA 


flew into each other’s arms and lavished 
sweet kisses upon each other. 

The sister was the first to speak. “ Come 
out upon the balcony with me, brother.” 

When they were upon the balcony the 
Prince asked his sister whom she had mar¬ 
ried, and she answered, “ I am married to 
the Emperor of the Dragons. My husband 
is himself a Dragon. So, brother, it would 
be worth your while to hide, for my husband 
often says he would cut his brothers-in-law 
in small bits if he ever laid eyes upon them. 
Let me first question him; if he promises to 
do you no harm I will tell him of your 
arrival.” 

So said and so done. The sister concealed 
her brother and his horse. The evening drew 
on. The Dragon’s supper was ready; they 
were awaiting his arrival, when at last he 
came. When he flew in the whole earth was 
bathed in blinding light; but he had hardly 
entered when he called to his wife: 


328 


STEELPACHA 


“ Wife, I smell men’s bones. Who is 
here? Tell me quick! ” 

“No one is here,” she answered. 

“ That is not possible,” said he. 

Upon this the wife said, “ I want to ask 
you a question, and do you answer me truly 
and honestly. Would you do any harm 
to my brothers if they happened to come 
here? ” 

The Dragon-emperor answered, “ I would 
have the eldest and the second killed and 
roasted, but I would do nothing to the 
youngest.” 

Upon this she said, “ My youngest broth¬ 
er, your brother-in-law, is arrived.” 

When the Dragon-emperor heard this he 
cried, “Out with him, then!” And when 
the sister brought her brother from his 
hiding-place the Emperor ran to meet him 
and showered kisses upon him. 

“ Welcome here, brother-in-law! ” 

“ God be with you, sister’s husband! ” 

329 


STEELPACHA 


“ Where were you hiding? ” 

“ Here I am! ” And he told him the ob¬ 
ject of his journey, from beginning to end. 

The Dragon-emperor said to him, “ You 
are running the greatest risk, God help you! 
The day before yesterday Steelpacha flew 
past with your wife. I was awaiting him 
with seven thousand dragons, but we could 
not overcome him. I adjure you, let that 
fiend alone. I will give you money to your 
heart’s desire; just go quietly home.” 

But the Prince would not hear a word of 
this advice, and emphatically declared that 
he would continue his journey on the mor¬ 
row. When the Emperor saw that he could 
not prevent him, nor induce him to turn 
back, he drew a feather out of his wing and 
gave it to his brother-in-law, with these 
words: 

“ Give good heed to what I now tell you. 
Take this feather of mine, and if you come 
across Steelpacha and find yourself in great 
330 


STEELPACHA 


danger, then burn my feather; that very 
moment I will come to your aid with the 
whole strength of my army.” 

The Prince concealed the feather in a safe 
place and went his way. He travelled on 
and on until he reached a second great city. 
Here again, as he was going through the 
city, a woman called to him from a balcony: 

“ Ho, there, you Prince, dismount from 
your horse and come into the court!” 

The Prince rode into the court. Behold, 
who comes to meet him? It is his second 
sister! They rush into each other’s arms 
and kiss each other heartily. Then the sis¬ 
ter led her brother into the castle. 

When she had put the horse into the stable 
she asked the object of his journey, and he 
told her the whole story of his adventures, 
finally asking her, “ And whom have you 
married, dear sister? ” 

She answered, “ I am married to the Em¬ 
peror of the Falcons. He will come home 
831 


STEELPACHA 


to-night. But I must carefully conceal you, 
for he is furious against my brothers.” So 
saying, she concealed the Prince. 

In a little while the Falcon-emperor came 
home, and the whole city quaked with the 
tumult of his approach. Supper was served 
at once, but not before he had cried to his 
wife, “ I smell men’s flesh! ” 

The wife answered, “ What are you think¬ 
ing of, husband? ” 

At last, after talking for some time of this 
thing and that, she asked him, “ Would you 
do any harm to my brothers if they were 
to come here? ” 

The Emperor said, “ It would surely go 
hard with the eldest and the second, but I 
would do nothing to the youngest.” Then 
she told him of her youngest brother’s ar¬ 
rival. 

The Falcon-emperor commanded his wife 
to bring her brother before him, and as soon 
as he beheld him he fell upon his neck and 
832 


STEELPACHA 


kissed him. “ Welcome, dear brother-in- 
law!” 

“ A lucky and joyful meeting, dear sis¬ 
ter’s husband!” answered the Prince; upon 
which they sat down to supper. 

After supper the Emperor asked his 
brother-in-law concerning the object of his 
journey, and the Prince replied that he was 
seeking Steelpacha, and told him all his ad¬ 
ventures. But the Emperor began to coun¬ 
sel him. 

“ Give up your journey,” said he. “ Just 
let me tell you something about Steelpacha. 
That very day on which he stole your wife 
I was awaiting him with five thousand fal¬ 
cons, and waged a fearful battle with him. 
Blood flowed knee-deep around us, yet we 
could not prevail against him. And how 
shall you, a single man, overmaster him? So 
I give you this well-meant advice: Go back 
home. So much of my treasure as your 
heart desires is yours; take it and go.” 

333 


STEELPACHA 


But the Prince answered, “ Hearty thanks 
for your offer, but go back with my task 
unperformed I will not. No, never! I must 
yet find Steelpacha.” For he thought to 
himself, “ Why should I not? Have I not 
three lives? ” 

When the Falcon-emperor became con¬ 
vinced that he could not move him from his 
purpose he drew a feather out of his wing 
and gave it to him, with these words, “ Here, 
take this feather of mine, and if you come 
into great danger strike a fire and burn it. 
I will come at once to your aid with all my 
forces.” 

So the Prince took the feather and set 
forth to seek Steelpacha. 

For a long time he went up and down 
through the wide world, until at last he 
reached a third city. He had hardly entered 
it when a woman called to him from a bal¬ 
cony, “ Dismount and come into the court! ” 

The Prince turned his horse and rode into 
334 


STEELPACHA 


the court. Behold, here is his youngest sis¬ 
ter! They fall into each other’s arms and 
lavish kisses upon each other. She led the 
horse into the stable, the brother into the 
castle. Then the Prince asked, “ Sister, 
whom have you married? ” 

And she answered, “ My consort is the 
Emperor of the Eagles; it is he whom I 
have married.” 

When the Eagle-emperor came home that 
night his wife met him affectionately; but he 
paid no attention to her greeting, but asked 
her, “What man has come into my castle? 
Tell me at once! ” 

She answered, “ There is no one here,” 
and they sat down to supper. During sup¬ 
per she asked him, as if by chance, “ Would 
you do any harm to my brothers if they 
should suddenly arrive? ” 

The Emperor answered, “ The eldest and 
the second I should kill without hesitation, 
but not the youngest. On the contrary, I 
835 


STEELPACHA 


would hasten to his aid at any time, as far 
as it was in my power.” 

Then she said to the Emperor, “ My 
youngest brother is come to pay us a visit.” 

The Emperor commanded that he should 
be presented at once, went to meet him, and 
greeted him with, “ Welcome, dear brother- 
in-law ! ” 

The other answered, “ A lucky and joy¬ 
ful meeting, dear sister’s husband! ” 

So they sat down to the table. 

After supper they talked of one thing 
and another, and at last the Prince told them 
that he was seeking for Steelpacha. When 
the Eagle-emperor heard this he said every¬ 
thing he could think of to dissuade him from 
this idea. 

“ Dear brother-in-law,” said he, “ leave 
that fiend alone and give up your journey. 
Stay, rather, here with me; you shall be 
made happy in every respect.” 

But the Prince paid no heed to his words, 
336 


STEELPACHA 


and as soon as morning dawned he made 
ready and set off to seek Steelpacha. But 
before he went away the Eagle-emperor, 
who saw that he could not turn him from 
his purpose, drew forth a feather from his 
wing and said: 

“ Take this feather, brother-in-law, and if 
ever you are in need or danger, strike a fire 
and burn it. I will come at once with my 
eagles to help you.” 

The Prince put the feather in his pocket 
and set forth. 

Thus he roved around the world from 
city to city, going ever farther and farther, 
till at last one day he discovered his wife in 
a cavern. She was not a little surprised to 
see him, and cried out to him, “ In the name 
of Heaven, husband, how came you here? ” 

He hastily told her his adventures, and 
added, “ Wife, my wife! Quick, let us 
flee! ” 

But she hesitated. “ Where shall we go, 
337 


STEELPACHA 


since Steelpacha can overtake us in a mo¬ 
ment? He will kill you on the spot, and 
bring me back here again.” 

But the Prince, being mindful of the three 
lives which Steelpacha had given him, still 
coaxed his wife to flee, and they set out. 
Hardly had they started when Steelpacha 
heard of it, gave rapid chase, and overtook 
them. 

“ Oho, little Prince! ” he cried out, “ you 
would steal my wife, would you? ” 

He tore her away from the Prince, and 
continued, “ This time I give you your life, 
for I have not forgotten that I promised 
you three lives; but go now, and never come 
back again after her, for if you do your life 
is at stake.” 

With these words Steelpacha took the 
woman away, while the Prince remained 
alone, in doubt what to do next. At last he 
resolved to go after his wife again. 

When he arrived near the cavern he 
338 


STEELPACHA 


waited for his opportunity till Steelpacha 
should be gone away; and once more he fled, 
taking his wife with him. 

Steelpacha soon heard of it, pursued after 
them, overtook them, fitted an arrow to his 
bow, and cried out, “ Would you rather that 
I kill you with this arrow, or shall I cut you 
down with my sword? ” 

The Prince began to beg with all his 
might, and Steelpacha said to him, “ This 
second time I give you your life, but let me 
tell you one thing: don’t you try again to 
carry away this woman, for I will not again 
give you your life, but will kill you on the 
spot as dead as a mouse.” 

With these words he seized the woman 
and carried her away, while the Prince again 
remained alone, always planning how to res¬ 
cue his wife. Finally he said to himself, 
“ After all, why should I be afraid? I still 
have two lives—that one which he gave me 
and the one I had before.” 

389 


STEELPACHA 


So he resolved to go back to his wife the 
next day when Steelpacha was absent. 

“ Come,” he said to her, “ let us flee!” 
She objected that it was useless to flee, since 
they would be at once overtaken; but he con¬ 
strained her to go with him. 

But very soon Steelpacha overtook them, 
and cried out to the Prince, “ Wait, just 
wait! I will never forgive you this! ” The 
Prince was terrified and began to beg for 
mercy, but Steelpacha silenced him. 

“You remember that I gave you three 
lives? All right; now I give you the third, 
and you have nothing more to expect from 
me. So go home in peace, and beware of 
hazarding the life which God lent you.” 

When the Prince saw that he was power¬ 
less against the might of Steelpacha he 
turned back homeward with a heavy heart. 
Suddenly he remembered what his brothers- 
in-law had said to him when they gave him 
the feathers, and he said to himself, “ Come 
340 


STEELPACHA 


what come may, I will go once more to 
rescue my wife, and in case of need I will 
burn the feathers and call my brothers-in- 
law to my assistance.” 

So said and so done. 

He went back to the cavern and saw 
his wife in Steelpacha’s arms. He waited 
around till the latter had gone away, and 
then showed himself to his wife. She was 
not a little frightened, and cried out in ter¬ 
ror, “In the name of Heaven! Is life so 
hateful that you come back again for me? ” 

He calmed her and told her that his 
brothers-in-law had promised to help him in 
utmost need. “ And therefore,” said he, “ I 
am come for you once more; make ready to 
flee.” 

She did so, and they hastened away; but 
Steelpacha soon got news of their flight, and 
cried to them from afar, “Just wait, little 
Prince; you haven’t escaped me yet! ” 

But as soon as the Prince saw Steelpacha 
341 


STEELPACHA 


he drew the three feathers and his tinder-box 
out of his pocket, struck a light, and kindled 
the feathers one by one. But while they 
were kindling Steelpacha overtook him, 
drew his sword, and cleft the Prince in half. 

That very moment what a prodigy 
occurred! There came flying the Dragon- 
emperor with his dragons, the Falcon-em¬ 
peror with his falcons, and the Eagle- 
emperor with all his eagles, and waged battle 
with Steelpacha. Blood flowed in streams, 
but fortune favored Steelpacha, and he 
made off safely, carrying his prize, the Prin¬ 
cess, with him. 

The three emperors now took counsel over 
their brother-in-law’s body, and decided to 
recall him to life. So they summoned three 
of the swiftest dragons and asked which one 
of them could most speedily bring some wa¬ 
ter from the river Jordan. The first one 
said, “ I can do it within half an hour the 
second said, “ I can do it in a quarter of an 
342 


STEELPACHA 


hour ”; the third said, “ I will have it here 
in nine minutes.” The emperors said to this 
one, “ Then set out, Dragon, as fast as pos¬ 
sible.” 

The Dragon put forth all his impetuous 
strength, and truly within nine minutes he 
brought back the water from the Jordan. 
The emperors took the water, poured it over 
the two portions of the Prince’s body, and 
scarcely had the water touched them when 
the young man sprang upon his feet, safe 
and sound, as if nothing had happened to 
him. 

The emperors then counselled him, “ Now 
go back home, since you have been restored 
to life! ” 

But the Prince answered that he must 
once more try his luck, and, by one means 
or another, free his wife from the clutches 
of that fiend. His imperial brothers-in-law 
remonstrated: 

41 ‘ Do give it up! You will surely perish 
343 


STEELPACHA 


this time, for you have no life at command 
except the one God lent you! ” 

But for all answer the Prince remained 
dumb. 

Then the emperors said, “ All right; if 
you are bent upon trying again, come what 
come may, at least don’t attempt to get 
your wife away by flight, but beg her to 
wheedle Steelpacha into telling her where¬ 
in his strength lies. Then bring us word, 
that we may help you to get the best of 
him.” 

So the Prince stole secretly to his wife and 
told her how she should coax Steelpacha to 
tell her the secret of his strength. Then he 
betook himself to some place of safety. 

When Steelpacha came home the Princess 
beset him with questions. “ In Heaven’s 
name, do tell me wherein your strength 
lies! ” 

Steelpacha answered, “ My pretty wife, 
my strength lies in my sword.” 

344 


STEELPACHA 


Then the Princess prayed to the sword as 
if to God. At sight of this Steelpacha burst 
into a mocking laugh and said to her, “ Oh, 
you simple woman! my strength lies not in 
my sword but in my arrow.” 

Therefore she fell upon her knees before 
the arrow and began to pray to it. Then 
Steelpacha said, “ My wife, some one must 
have well taught you how to coax from me 
the secret of my strength. If your husband 
were alive I should say it was he who had 
taught you.” 

But she swore by body and soul that no 
one had taught her, no one had been there. 

After several days her husband came 
again, and she told him that thus far it had 
been impossible to learn from Steelpacha 
wherein his strength lay. But the Prince an¬ 
swered, “ Try again,” and went away. 

When Steelpacha came home she asked 
him anew wherein his strength lay. Upon 
which he answered her, “ Since I see that 
345 


STEELPACHA 


you have a high respect for my strength, I 
will confess the truth about it.” 

Then he told her: “ Far from here is a 
mountain-peak. On this mountain-peak 
lives a Fox. The Fox has a heart in which a 
bird is concealed; this bird holds my strength. 
But that Fox is very hard to catch, for he 
has many transformations.” 

The next day, when Steelpacha was away 
from home, the Prince came again to his 
wife to learn what he had told her. She re¬ 
peated everything carefully, and the Prince 
went straight away to his brothers-in-law 
with the much-longed-for news. They re¬ 
ceived it with joy, and at once set out 
with the Prince to go to that mountain- 
peak. 

Arrived there, they set the eagles upon the 
Fox, which immediately took refuge in a 
lake and there changed himself into a gull 
with six wings. But the falcons gave battle 
to the gull and drove him thence. He flew 
346 


STEELPACHA 


high amid the clouds, the falcons ever fol¬ 
lowing. In a trice the gull changed himself 
into a fox again and tried to escape into the 
earth; but, falling into the power of the 
eagles and all the rest of the mighty host, he 
was surrounded and taken prisoner. 

Then the emperors commanded that the 
Fox should be cut open and his heart taken 
out. A fire was kindled, the heart cut open, 
the bird taken out and cast into the flames. 
As soon as the bird was burned Steelpacha 
vanished forever. 

So the Prince took his wife and went hap¬ 
pily home. 

“ That is one of your very best stories,” 
said the starosta. “ How it does bring back 
old times! While I was listening I could 
hardly believe that this big man here by 
the stove is I. It seemed rather as if I must 
be the little boy yonder.” 

“ Did grandmother tell these same stories 
347 


STEELPACHA 


to you when you were little, father? ” asked 
the little boy. 

“ Many and many a time. And I’ll war¬ 
rant she has as many more to tell you as 
those you have heard already. But it is late, 
and we have not had much sleep these last 
few nights. So every one to bed, and don’t 
forget to thank God for a happy wedding 
and a good son and brother-in-law.” 


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